For Honor: Brothers Oath
by N7Gundam
Summary: Join the brothers Johann and Rikard as they fight for their home, their people, and each other. Will focus mainly on the Knights, but will throw in some Viking and Samurai as well.
1. Chapter 1: Trouble

**Chapter 1: Trouble**

Talsmith castle, Fireshelf, Ashfeld.

" _It turned out to be a pleasant day."_ the Lawbringer thought to himself. Outside the walls of Talsmith castle, Johann Talsmith patrols the surrounding village. He nods in greeting to the passersby as he makes his way to the market square. As the Lawbringer patrols the village a man approaches him.

"M'lord, if I may have a moment of your time?" the man asks, taking off his straw hat and holds it before him.

"Yes, what can I do for you?" he replies setting the end of his poleaxe in the ground.

"Over the past few days the farms have been attacked by a pack of wolves. They've already killed some of our livestock." the farmer nervously tells the Lawbringer.

"That is a problem. I'll post some of our hunters around the farms. See if we can't scare them off or get rid of them." the Lawbringer places an armored hand on the man's shoulder. "We'll take care of it."

"Thank you, m'lord." the man puts his hat back on and turns to go back to the market.

The Lawbringer continues his patrol, briefly stopping at the hunter's outpost, and nearly makes it back to the barracks before he hears rapid footsteps behind him. He turns, readying his poleaxe, to see one of his captains running towards him.

"Sir! Sir!" the captain yells.

The Lawbringer holds his hand up, "Calm yourself captain. Catch your breath."

"Yes sir." the captain takes several deep breaths. "Our sentries... have spotted a Knight patrol... several appeared wounded. They should be arriving at the main gate shortly."

The Lawbringer thinks for a moment. "Go to the barracks, prepare to receive wounded. Let Lord Talsmith know of the patrol's arrival." he orders

"Yes sir! It will be done." the captain salutes and rushes off towards the barracks.

With poleaxe in hand, the Lawbringer makes his way to the main gate. Halfway through the village, a bell sounds from up ahead, the Lawbringer picks up his pace. Soldiers at the gate notice his approach.

"My lord, a knight group of Knights are approaching!" shouts a soldier from atop the gate.

"Well... let them in! Open it!" he yells back pointing to the gate.

The large doors open with the sound of heavy wood against stone and the clanking of heavy chains. The first to come through were the wounded, several being carried on shields. Twenty men came through the gate, gathering in a group, before the Lawbringer spotted the first officer. A harrowed looking captain.

"Captain." the Lawbringer calls out.

The captain looks up seeing the Lawbringer and approaches. "Yes sir?"

"What Legion are you? Who is your commander?" he questions.

"Most of us are Ash Legion. Our commander is a Warden. The one with a steel crest." the captain answers.

"Thank you, captain. The barracks is up this main road, near the castle." the Lawbringer nods up the road. "Take your men there."

"Thank you, sir." the captain says before rejoining his men and making their way up the road towards the barracks.

Johann waits at the gate inspecting the troops that arrive. A Conqueror walks through carrying a soldier over his shoulder. Johann glare at the conscript from behind his helmet. A Warden walks up holding one end of a makeshift stretcher. Johann was about to call him over when he noticed the helm lacked the steel ridge ornament. More soldier flow through followed by an imposing Lawbringer carrying a soldier. The flow of soldiers comes to an end, Johann raises an eyebrow and walks through the gate. He sees two Wardens and a peacekeeper standing just beyond.

"Aveline, what's the final count? The Warden, facing away from Johann, asks.

"One hundred forty three. We lost seventeen since this morning." the other Warden answers. Johann notices this Warden is female, a fiery red braid draped over her shoulder.

The male Warden sighs and turns to the Peacekeeper, "Ella, are you up for a little recon of our path here, to see if they fell behind?"

"Of course." the Peacekeeper tersely replies. She then looks to Johann and nods in his direction. "We have company."

The Wardens turn to face Johann. He sees the male Warden has a steel crest atop is helm. Removing his helm, Johann walks up to the three. "Sir Warden, I am Johann Talsmith. Son of Lord Bromhill Talsmith." He introduces himself and extends his hand to the Warden.

The Warden looks to the offered hand then back to Johann. "I know its been a while," the Warden removes his helmet. "but don't you recognize me, brother?"

Johann looks over the Warden. Armor dented, leather and chain mail torn. Longsword, dirty and chipped. His tabard, ripped, singed, covered in mud and blood, bares the faded colors of the Ash Legion. Johann notices a familiar emblem under the mud. _'Wait...brother?'_

He looks back to the Warden's face, "Rikard? Is that you?"

"Its good to see you, Johann" The brothers hug awkwardly with armor.

"You've been away for far to long. That scar is new." Johann says pointing to the long scar running along the side of Rikard's face.

Rikard runs a finger along the scar and chuckles. "Courtesy of a feisty Berserker. Let me tell you, never get between a Berserker and her favorite axe. It won't end well."

"You also look tired, very tired." Johann points out.

"Heh. He means you look like shit." the female Warden says, punching Rikard's shoulder.

"Come now, Aveline, I can't look that bad. Ella, what do you think?" Rikard turns to the Peacekeeper. "And, She's gone."

Johann looks around but doesn't see the Peacekeeper anywhere near the gate. "That happens often?"

Rikard shrugs, "More often than you would think. You get used to it." he motions towards the castle. "Shall we head in?"

"Of course." Johann places his helm back on and goes back through the gate. Rikard places his helm on as well and the Wardens follow Johann. Once they pace through the gate Johann shouts up to the gatekeeper. "Close the gate!"

"Aye sir!" a soldier calls back as the gate close with the sounds of chains and scraping wood.

"Aveline, go on ahead. Check on the men in the barracks, gather the others, and meet me at the castle." Rikard orders.

"Yes sir." she answers before increasing her pace towards the barracks.

The brothers walk in silence for a while before Rikard speaks up, "We have trouble heading our way."


	2. Chapter 2: There

**Chapter 2: There**

 **Talsmith castle, Fireshelf, Ashfeld**

"How much trouble?" Johann worriedly asks.

"Three raiding parties worth." Rikard answers, waving at a young boy staring at them from along side his mother.

"That is... problematic."

"Indeed. My company ran into them near Mt. Ignis. They were attempting to take the stronghold there but redirected when they caught wind of us. We attempted to fight back, setting ambushes and traps along the way. But, there are just so many if them, all we did was slow them down slightly."

"And, they are coming here?"

"No doubt. Ella was able to interrogate one of them." Rikard adjusts his gauntlets. "Their plan was to take Ignis then head here, but they couldn't take the stronghold. So they changed course, playing cat and mouse with my company along the way. Talsmith is one of the most well off towns in the region, and they have heard of all the weapons and armor we make here. If they take Talsmith it will be a major boon for the Vikings." he finishes, nodding to a group of ladies standing near the entrance of a bakery.

They fall silent as Johann tries to process what his brother said, and the way he said it. _'Rikard used to study the Viking culture, admire it even. Now, there is an edge to his voice, a hatred that wasn't there before he left.'_

"Rikard, what happened to you out there?"

"More than can be said in a brief conversation." Rikard lets out a heavy sigh. "How much combat have you seen here?"

"We get a few patrols during spring and summer. The Samurai seem content to hold their border, and be left alone. Makes sense, they don't have the numbers to hold a prolonged war against us."

"Its not just us they are fighting."

"What do you mean?" Johann asks as he returns the salute of a captain.

"The Vikings are pushing against the Samurai just as much as they are the Knights. They want vengeance against us. Ever since Apollyon and the Blackstone Legion, the Vikings have been relentless. And, they seem to think the Samurai are easy prey. To be honest, the fighting along the northern border is near constant, and we are losing. The Lord Warden of the Iron Legion has tried to hold a peace conference with the Warborn and the Emperor, but nothing came of it. These past few years the fighting has only gotten more brutal. Heh... I've only been on the front lines for a few years and I've already lost to many men and friends than I care to admit..." Rikard changes to a more cheerful tone. "So, how are mother and father?"

Johann blinks several times, under his helmet, taking in what his brother said. "Uh... they are well. Mother has taken up jewelry making. Some of the neighboring nobles have really taken a liking to some of the pieces she's made. She actually picked it up from a captured Samurai woman."

"A Samurai woman? One of their warriors?" Rikard interupts.

"Yes, she wielded a spear."

"A Nobushi then... hmm"

"Aye, she was leading one of those patrols I mentioned. Killed one of my captains and twelve men before we subdued her. She was the only female captive we had and mother wanted to meet her. It took some time before they could hold a conversation with each other, but they figured it out."

"Is this Nobushi still held here?"

"No." Johann says grimly. "Father... had all of the Samurai from that patrol executed."

"I see... What has father been up to?" Rikard asks.

"He has been working the smiths and forges double time recently. He says that the more gear we ship out to the legions, the less likely the are to conscript his people. We send shipments nearly weekly to several legions."

"I have come across several of the legion commanders that wield weapons bearing our forge's mark." Rikard notes.

" Ha, I bet that gave you some pull with the ranking officers."

"Maybe... If they ever knew, but I never told anyone who I am. I'm just another Warden trying to protect the people of Ashfeld." The brothers stop before the castle courtyard portcullis. "Even my companions didn't know I was a Talsmith til we were almost here. Didn't you notice? The people we past, they didn't see Johann and Rikard Talsmith. The just saw you escorting a random Warden to the castle. That's how I like it, no special treatment."

Johann raises an eyebrow, "Really?"

"Yep. Anyway, how angry is father going to be when he sees me?"

Johann sighs, "He was furious that you left against his wishes, he will probably be more cross that Vikings followed you here."

"The fight was coming here with or without me. Now, how many men do you have, and what kind of defenses are in place?"

Johann motions for Rikard to follow. "I have one hundred trained men, including officers." They enter the courtyard proper, passing several soldiers who salute. "There are a dozen experienced hunters we can call upon. As well as the smiths at the forges." Johann stops and points to one of two catapults. "We recently built a pair of catapults, but unfortunately we only have one that is operational." He then points to the gate. "We have our traditional reinforced door and portcullis, with the hot oil pot you installed before you left, and two ballista in the flanking towers." He turns to face the castle. "We built a secondary wall and gate in front of the castle entrance with perches for several archers, and two more ballista."

"Have you tested the catapult you do have?"

"Not yet. Father didn't see the need to." They pass through the inner gate and climb the steps to the castle's entrance.

Rikard facepalms and shakes his head. "Why build them but not test them?"

"Father thought just their presence would be enough of a deterrent that we would never need to actually use them."

Rikard grabs his brother's shoulder and stops before they enter the doors. "Does father command these men or do you? When was the last time he held a blade or went through drills? Even Daubeny, for all his faults, fought along side his men."

Johann brushes off his brother's hand. "What are you suggesting?"

"That if father doesn't see reason, you will have to take command of your men." Rikard says somewhat aggressively.

"Hrmm... Are you ready to speak with father?" Johann says tersely.

"I think I'd rather face that Berserker again."

-o0o-

 **Wilderness, Fireshelf, Ashfeld**

 _'That's right. A little closer. No! To the left you idiot!'_ Ella, the Peacekeeper, thinks to herself as she observes a Viking scout creep closer to her perch in the trees. The scout tries and fails to quietly make his way through the underbrush. _'A little more.'_ She draws her dagger and leaps from the tree limb. The scout looks up with just enough time to see his death coming, before Ella plunges her dagger into his neck, and covers his mouth as she knocks him to the ground. "Shhh... join your ancestors, barbarian." She tells the man as life fades from his eyes.

Ella looks up from the scout, listening for any other movement. Satisfied that she remains undetected, she silently makes her way towards the route they traveled this morning. Ella already found two of their men, both dead, but found evidence that others had been taken. She sees movement ahead and ducks behind a thick bush, staying low to the ground. She peers through the trees and catches sight of five Knights, hands bound, being escorted by group of Vikings.

 _'There you are'_


	3. Chapter 3: Warborn

**Chapter 3: Warborn**

 **Wilderness, Fireshelf, Ashfeld**

 _'Where are you going?'_ Ella asks herself as she follows the Viking group and their Knight prisoners. The glimpses she has gotten of the group, Ella notes, from the red cross on their armor, the captives are from one of Aveline's squads. The Vikings outnumber her and the captives two to one. Ella glances around a tree, _'The Raider will be easy enough, the lumbering oaf.'_

The Raider looks in her direction, forcing Ella to hide herself. She waits a few moments then continues to trail the group. She spots a Berserker at the head of the group. _'You will be a little trickier.'_ They continue to make their way through the woods, the Raider constantly shoving the captives forward with his axe. Ella follows them for several miles before the Vikings stop at a small cabin. _'Must be a hunter's cabin.'_ The Vikings tie their captives to the nearby trees and begin to start a campfire. The Raider enters the cabin, Ella could hear muffled voices from inside before the Raider drags out two severely beaten men and throws them to the ground, spitting on them, then goes back inside the cabin.

As the Vikings start to eat, Ella watches them, studies them, deciding on what course of action she would need to take. Then she felt a chill go down her spine. Ella checked her surroundings but couldn't see anything out of place. Still she couldn't shake the feeling that she was being watched. She heard a twig snap to her left, quickly turning drawing her short sword and dagger, Ella sees a wild woman charging her.

"Éttu skít!"

-o0o-

 **Talsmith castle, Fireshelf, Ashfeld**

The brothers Johann and Rikard walk through the grand foyer of the castle. Rikard looks around noticing several finely made tapestries that were not here before he left. They continue on til they reach the great hall. Rikard briefly stops seeing his father sitting in a throne on a raised dais flanked by two Wardens. Rikard leans towards Johann.

"When did he get the throne?" He whispers.

"About a year and a half ago. It was to celebrate the arms contract with several legions."

"Uh-huh. And who are those Wardens?"

"Father's personal guard. They arrived just before the contract was completed."

"Hmm" Rikard eyes the two Wardens warily.

"Father." Johann says, removing his helm, as they reach the base of the dais. "You won't believe who..."

"Is this the commander of this patrol that came limping to our door?" Lord Bromhill Talsmith interrupts.

"Um... Yes he is."

Rikard removes his helm. "Its good to see you father." He studies his father for a moment. He wears a fine white, silk shirt, tan trousers with well made black leather boots, and a dark blue cloak. White and blue the family colors. Rikard also notices several jeweled rings on his hands and a golden circlet around his head.

Bromhill raises an eyebrow and shifts in his throne. "So, the lost pup finds his way home. Couldn't cut it out there, could you, so you come limping back."

Rikard narrows his eyes. "I'm here about the Viking horde about to come knocking on your door. But, if you rather I walk out that door." he puts his helm back on. "I'll take my men and you can pray some other legion comes to your aid." Rikard turns to leave.

Johann reaches out to stop him, "Brother wait!"

"Halt!" Bromhill yells, the Wardens beside him draw there swords.

Rikard stops, grips the hilt of his sword, and looks over his shoulder to his father.

"Tell me of these Vikings."

Rikard turns to his father, "Three raiding parties have joined together. They were attacking Mt. Ignis, but were unable to take it. That's when my company came across them. We were able to interrogate one and they were going to head here after Ignis. They abandoned Ignis and started making there way here. My company stayed just ahead of them, they will arrive with in the next day or two."

"You lead them straight to us, then."

"They were coming here anyway. It was just luck that I happened to..."

"Silence! You will take your c _ompany_ and fight them head on!" Bromhill orders

The doors to the hall open and a guard steps through. "My lord, a group saying their commander wanted them to meet him here."

Bromhill looks to Rikard, waving his hand the Wardens sheathe their blades. "My subordinates. I asked them to meet here so we could all discuss a plan."

Bromhill sighs annoyed, "Let them in." he says with a wave of his hand.

-o0o-

 **Talsmith barracks, Fireshelf, Ashfeld**

Aveline finishes wrapping bandages around the thigh of a badly wounded soldier. She looks up to see the man has either passed out from pain or exhaustion. Aveline stands up and goes to a nearby wash basin to clean her hands of blood. She grabs a somewhat clean rag and dries her hands as a Lawbringer enters the room.

"How are they?"

"Well, Robert, some will make it but they won't be able to fight again. We lost three more since we got here and I think we will lose some during the night." Aveline lets out a long sigh as she puts her gauntlets back on.

The Lawbringer picks up her helm and hands it to her. "The others are waiting outside to head to the castle."

"Thank you" She says taking the helm. "How have the local troops been? Any trouble?"

Robert shakes his head. "They have been very accommodating. Offering any assistance they can." They exit the barracks to meet up with the other officers. Robert motions towards a group of local soldiers carrying the Ash Legion dead. "They're even taking care of our dead. Burials with full honors."

"This will be the first time I've ever been in a proper castle." They hear Ives, the Conqueror say, as they join the group.

"What about that nice place we went to on the Ice Coast?" The other Warden, Lambert, remarks.

Ives waves a dismissive hand, "That was little more than a ruin and it smelt of wet dog."

"But, you have to admit they had some fine ale there." Lambert notices Robert and Aveline. "We're ready. Any idea what kind of welcome we'll have?"

Aveline takes the lead as they walk towards the castle. "Probably pretty good. The Lawbringer here is Rikard's brother. He was glad to see him at least."

"Do you know anything about this Bromhill Talsmith?" Lambert asks, returning the salute of a captain as they enter the courtyard.

Aveline shakes her head. "Only that the Talsmith family has made incredible weapons and armor for generations. Robert, do you know any more?"

"I don't know about the man himself, but the Talsmith name is highly respected among most armorers."

Ives rubs the back of his neck, "Why didn't Rikard tell us who his family was?"

"Every man has his reasons. Do you like people asking about your past, Ives?" Lambert placing a hand on the Conqueror's shoulder.

"Ah... That makes sense." Ives says lowering his head.

They walk through the courtyard, pass the inner gate, and up the steps to the castle door. A guard stops them. "Halt. State your business."

Robert steps forward, towering over the guard. "We are of the Ash Legion. Our commander is already here and requested we meet with him and the lord of this castle."

"Oh... Yes, the Warden master Johann was escorting. I'll take you to them, they should be meeting with Lord Talsmith in the great hall. If you will, follow me." The guard bows slightly and opens the door.

The Lawbringer, Conqueror, and Wardens follow the guard through the grand foyer. They notice several servants going about their duties stop and stare at them. Ives stares at all the finery in the halls, majestic tapestries, busts, paintings, and suits of armor from the Talsmith bloodline, and elaborate rugs. Ives stops looks down to his boots, covered in mud, then behind him to see the servant girls they past frantically cleaning the muddy bootprints he tracked in. He sidesteps to get off the rug and catches up to his comrades, walking on the stone floor.

They approach a large double door. "Please wait here. I'll let Lord Talsmith know of your arrival."

"Silence!"

They all hear someone shout from inside. The four knights all look at each other as the guard enters the hall. With a nod from Robert, they all prepare for anything. Gripping their weapons a little tighter they wait either for the guard to let them in or for an order from Rikard.

The guard returns and opens the doors. "You may enter."

The four enter the great hall and immediately sense the tension hanging heavy in the air. Without needing an order from Rikard, they form up next to him. Lambert and Robert on his left. Aveline and Ives on his right.

"Commander?"

"Its fine, Aveline. We're all being civil here. Aren't we, father.

"So now that your subordinates are here, go out and fight these Vikings that you so graciously lead to my castle." Bromhill sneers at the Knights before him.

Rikard shakes his head. "As I was saying before, we don't have the numbers to fight them head on. We need a strong defensive position that can hold them back long enough for us to pick them off. We tried to do that at the Cinder Mill, but the Vikings numbered to many. We withdrew and..."

"You ran with your tail between your legs didn't you, pup."

There is a rattle of metal, as Rikard clenches his fist. "It was a tactical withdrawal."

"Sure it was. Now if you won't go out and meet them what is your plan?"

"Knights, tactical appraisal." Rikard orders.

"The wall and gates around the city won't withstand the force bearing down on us. The castle walls are thick and strong, as is the gate." Robert reports.

"The soldiers are polite and well trained but lack experience fighting the brutality of these Vikings." Lambert adds.

"The catapults out there are in bad shape and practically useless. We could get them working and calibrated, but it will take some time." Ives continues.

"The people in the town will be undefended during the attack. We should get as many of them as we can behind the castle walls. Lay traps trough out the town to thin their numbers." Aveline finishes.

"We pick them off as the come through the town. My company, the soldiers stationed here, and as many volunteers as we can get from the townsfolk, we might be able to fend them off." Rikard concludes.

"Might be able to fend them off?" Bromhill questions.

"Nothing is certain in battle. One misstep, one wrong move, and its all over." Rikard looks to Johann, "My forces will take the brunt of the attack in the courtyard. Yours will make a secondary line, reinforcing as needed and holding the second gate."

Johann nods.

"I've heard enough. Let me think upon this." Bromhill says, waving his hand towards the door. "Leave now, return tomorrow morning."

Johann, Rikard, and the four Knights turn and leave the great hall. The hall doors close behind them, "Well, that was rough." Rikard lets out a sigh.

"What will you do now?" Johann asks

"We'll go back to the barrack to refine our plan and take stock of our supplies."

"Your room is always available here."

"I don't think I'm that welcome here at the moment. I would rather stay with my men anyway. Rest up Johann, we have long days ahead of us." Rikard pats Johann's shoulder before joining his friends and heading towards the barracks.

They exit the castle, the courtyard, and down the small hill to the barracks in silence.

"So, did anybody else notice the colors and emblems to two Wardens had?" Ives asks

"Yeah, Blackstones" Lambert answers.

"This just got more complicated." Robert says, shaking his head.

They get to the barracks, seeing three wounded soldiers slowly walking up the hill with a bloodied and beaten Peacekeeper leading the way.

"We have a big problem." Ella says upon meeting them, throwing a dented, blood covered viking helm on the ground. "The Warborn have joined the fight."


	4. Chapter 4: Son

**Chapter 4: Son**

 **Talsmith barracks, Fireshelf, Ashfeld**

Several soldiers sit around a table in the barracks, drinking from various tankards and cups, playing a game of cards. A few women go from bed to bed checking on the wounded.

"I put in two." A grizzled soldier says dropping a couple of coins on to the pile in the middle of the table.

"Hmm..." The captain studies him for a moment. "I see your two, and raise you three more."

The two then look to the young soldier. He nervously looks at his cards, the pile of coin on the table, then back to his comrades.

"I don't have anymore coin." The young man says, taking his tankard and finishing his drink. "My father gave me this tankard when I left home." He places the tankard on the pile.

The grizzled soldier throws his hand down. "Straight, ten high.

The captain smiles. "Full house, threes over fives."

They look to the young man again. " I have..."

The door to the barracks slams open, startling the women nearby and waking several of the soldiers. Commander Rikard enters quickly, holding the door open.

"Aveline, give them a once over and bandage them up." He orders

Aveline takes the three wounded soldiers to a nearby bed and begins to take off bits of their armor. Two of the women approach Aveline with a basin of clean water and fresh bandages.

The other officers enter, the Peacekeeper Ella looking particularly rough. She takes a seat next to the captain and rips her ruined sleeve off her arm, holding it against a bad gash near her shoulder. Rikard walks up to the table, looking towards the Lawbringer.

"Robert, bring your map over here."

The captain and two soldiers quickly stand and step back from the table giving the commander and his officers space. Robert steps up to the table, reaching into a pouch on his belt pulling out a folded map, and opens it, placing it on the table. Rikard places his dagger on one edge of the map and takes the young soldier's tankard, placing it on the other side.

"Where did you run into them, Ella?" Rikard asks

Ella looks over the map, finding Talsmith then tracing back. "Here." She points with an ungloved, bloodied hand.

"That is a lot closer than I'd like." The Conqueror, Ives says.

"Were you able to find out how many Warborn there are?"

Ella shakes her head, "Sorry, boss, I only saw three or four. But, any amount of Warborn is a problem." She hisses in pain as she wipes the blood from her arm.

"The last time we had sight of the raiding parties was at the Cinder Mill. A force that large, with siege weapons, is going to take some time to get here." Warden Lambert says looking over the map. "We may have another day or two, three at the most, before they are upon us."

Aveline walks up behind Ella, to examine her wounds. Moving Ella's hand away, she begins to clean the gaping wound noticing teeth marks.

"Did one of them bite you?"

Ella raises a hand in disbelief, " Some insane woman with them knocked me down and took a big chunk out of my shoulder. Hope she choked on it."

Rikard looks from Ella back to the map, "I didn't like our odds before, but now with the Warborn here..." He lets the thought hang in the air for a moment. "We're going to need help."

"Help? From where? Who could get here fast enough?" Ives sceptically asks.

"The Fireshelf Rangers patrol this area. They have an outpost..."

"They can't help." Ella interrupts, nodding to one of the men that arrived with her. "He's all that's left. Vikings hit there outpost not long ago."

"Blast." Rikard looks over the map. "The Dawn Legion has a stronghold here in Valle Dei. They might even be able to get a hold of the Knights of the Sun as well. We'll also send someone to make contact with the Ash Legion, but they may not make it in time."

"What about Mt. Ignis?" Aveline says as she cleans Ella's wound.

They all stare at each other for a brief moment.

"I doubt those fanatics will leave their precious mountain." Robert sneers.

"I met the leader of the Vulkans once, General Lucius Sentius Bruccius. He's an arrogant man, believing his volcano strongholds are impenetrable. Sell it to him as a great victory for him personally and he'll march his army straight here." Aveline tells them.

"Alright, I'll write up some missives. Lambert, who are our best riders?"

"Hmm... That would be Matthew, Davis, and..."

"Bloody hell! That hurts!" Ella yells

"Well, stop moving or I'll make it hurt even more." Aveline says, putting a hand on Ella's good shoulder to hold her down.

"And Timothy." Lambert finishes

"Gather them up, and show them where they're going. At dusk take them to the stables in town and see them off."

"Yes sir."

"The rest of you rest up tonight. Tomorrow we're going to be busy."

The others nod and go about their business. Rikard takes his dagger and puts it away, then takes the tankard and looks to the young soldier who had been standing nearby. He tosses the tankard to the young man.

"Don't play games of chance with things you aren't truly ready to lose."

-o0o-

 **Lord Talsmith's study**

Bromhill Talsmith sits at his desk, head in his hands. The only light in the room from a candle at the edge of his desk.

"You know what you must do, my lord."

Bromhill looks up to see the Wardens of his personal guard flanking the man in black and orange robes speaking to him.

"He is my son, Malachi." Bromhill says with a sharp tone.

"Every soldier in this war is someone's son. If you wish to keep living this life of luxury and receiving the coin, gold, and other gifts we provide you, you will get rid of him. We will take command of his troops to bolster our own."

Bromhill sighs and rubs his face with his hands.

"What's the matter? That Warden is merely your spare son. Your oldest will still take your seat and will be well provided for after your gone, the same goes for your wife, Lady Mila." Malachi smiles, making Bromhill uncomfortable. "I will leave you to your thoughts for now. I expect an answer by the morning." Malachi bows his head and exits the study, the two Wardens following him.

"Verdammt." Bromhill quietly says to the empty room.

-o0o-

 **Talsmith barracks**

Just past sunrise, Rikard exits the barracks, a steaming cup a coffee in hand, Robert and Aveline following him. He takes a sip of coffee.

"Mmm... How long has it been since we had good coffee?"

"Our stock ran out three weeks ago. But, good coffee? Going on four and half months from that little village in the Underlands." Robert answers.

They see Lambert and Ives come out of the mess hall, Ives happily gnawing on a turkey leg. Rikard motions for them to join them.

"Alright, we have some work to do today. Robert, Ives, get to work on the catapults. Lambert, take some men and go around town, look for any supplies and choke points we can make use of. Aveline, stay here and keep an eye on our wounded."

They all acknowledge their orders and depart to carry them out. Rikard finishes his coffee and goes back inside the barracks. As he places his empty cup on a table, he feels as though someone is watching him.

"Ella, I see you are feeling better this morning. Shall we go pay my father a visit?"

She steps around Rickard, putting on her helm. "Well, I did miss the family reunion yesterday." She draws her hood up. "Shall we away?"

"Away we shall." Rikard picks up his helm and they walk out of the barracks.

-o0o-

 **Talsmith castle**

Johann finishes donning his polished armor, grabs his poleaxe, and leaves his quarters. Heavy armored footsteps echo through the empty stone halls. A steward exits one of the rooms as he passes.

"Good morning master Johann." The steward says with a bow of his head.

"Good morning Harrison. Isn't your daughter expecting soon?"

"Yes she is, the midwife says within the week. My wife is very excited, she says she has a feeling its going to be a boy." Harrison says with a smile.

"Give her my best, and if you need anything let me know."

"Thank you master Johann, I will."

Johann continues through the hall and down a set of stairs to the ground floor. As he steps foot on the ground floor the smell of breakfast hits his nose. _'Mmm... bacon. After the meeting, take care of this Viking business first. Then bacon.'_

Johann enters the great hall from a side entrance, seeing Rikard and his Peacekeeper already waiting in front of his father's throne. He removes his helm as he approaches them. Rikard removes his helm as he sees Johann.

"Morning Rikard"

"Good morning Johann. You remember Ella." Rikard motions to the Peacekeeper.

"Yes, good morning to you as well Lady Ella."

The Peacekeeper merely nods in greeting. Johann raises an eyebrow. _'Not very talkative, that one.'_

"Has father given you any idea of what he is planning?"

Johann shakes his head. "Father went straight to his study. I didn't see him for the rest of the evening."

"We bring more bad news. Ella encountered Warborn while looking for some of our lost men."

"You can't ever bring good news, can you?"

"If I do bring you good news, I'll be sure to spit shine my armor like yours just so you know ahead of time."

"Where are the rest of your officers?"

"They are already working on the defenses. Hopefully we will..."

Rikard stops as he sees his father enter the great hall and take a seat on his throne. The two Blackstone Wardens flanking him.

"Good morning father." Johann greets.

"Warden aren't you going to bow before your lord?" Bromhill asks.

Ella looks to Rikard and sees a slight twitch of his eye.

"Greetings father." Rikard bows his head slightly.

Johann approaches the base of the dais. "Father have you given thought to Rikard's plan?"

"I have. The Ash Legion soldiers will be placed under the command of my adviser, Malachi." A man in orange and black robes enters the great hall and stands next to Bromhill. "You no longer need concern yourself with the burden of command."

"Wait... What the hell are you talking about?"

"Your services are no longer needed, Warden." Malachi answers with a twisted grin.

"Even if you could relieve me of my command, my men would never follow a Blackstone. It was Apollyon and her Blackstones that reignited this bloody war! Father, I will lay down my life for the people of Talsmith, but you can't trust this charla.."

"Enough, pup! I think you underestimate the reach and strength the Blackstone Legion has, pup. Under the Blackstone banner we could push the Vikings out of our land and even take the Samurai as well."

"And you trust this man over your own son?"

"Over a son who has not been here for years! A son, who against my wishes, left to find glory far from here! A son that abandoned his family and home!" Bromhill stands, yelling at Rikard. "Yes."

"Father please." Johann tries to intervene.

"Quiet Johann!"

Ella looks to Rikard, then eyes the two Blackstone Wardens, preparing to draw her blades.

"I see what is going on here." Rikard coldly says. "The Blackstone Legion has been paying you off to supply them with weapons, armor, and supplies. The throne, the jewelry, all the fancy tapestries and rugs has all been from them. But, you can't let the other legions find out or you would lose all support from them. I refuse to give up my men."

"You think you can just walk back in here and take charge like you are lord of this castle? You are nothing but a spare! There was no use for you unless something happened to Johann! As of now, I strip you of the Talsmith name and all the liberties that come with it!"

Rikard lowers his gaze, takes a deep breath, reaches for a small chain around his neck, and breaks the chain. He looks up at his father. "What happened to you? What happened to the man that raised me? That told me stories of his days fighting alongside his brothers and sisters. What happened to the man that trained me how to use a blade?"

He looks at the item in his hand and throws it to his father's feet. Bromhill picks up a signet ring bearing the Talsmith family crest. "You want to take my name, fine." Rikard puts his helm on. "I am nothing but a Warden now. As a commander of the Ash Legion, I am commandeering all weapons, armor, supplies, and fighting men to defend this town from Viking attack. If you live through this attack, may you one day appreciate the sacrifice the Ash Legion has made."

Bromhill stares wide eyed at Rikard.

"You can't do that!" Malachi screams.

"Actually, he can." Johann interrupts. "War time law dictates that Legion commanders can use whatever means necessary in the defense of Ashfeld."

"If you wish Blackstone we can settle things right here and now. A duel between you and I for command. I'm ready if you are."

Malachi takes a step back.

"If you have need of me, I will be mounting the defense of your home."

Rikard turns and begins walking towards the exit. Ella stays, glaring at the Blackstones, then turns to follow her commander. The doors to the great halls close, echoing in the silence.

"I need to go get my men ready." Johann makes his way to the doors.

"Johann..."

"I think you have enough to think about at the moment, lord Talsmith."

Johann leaves his father to his thoughts.

After Johann leaves Malachi steps before Bromhill. "Now I will have to handle this myself." Malachi looks to the Wardens. "Trail him. When he is alone, eliminate him. If his subordinates come to his aid get rid of them." The Wardens nod and make their way out of the great hall.

"Congratulations Bromhill. You are now the proud father of a single son."


	5. Chapter 5: Lads

**Chapter 5: Lads**

 **Talsmith, Fireshelf, Ashfeld**

Rikard marches out of the castle in silence, Ella following right behind. Robert and Ives, repairing one of the catapults, watch as they cross the courtyard.

"Well, he looks pissed." Ives says to Robert.

"Then we better get these things working."

Rikard continues to march through the courtyard, several local soldiers quickly move out of his path. Past the barracks, where his own troops stand at attention as he goes by. Half way through the village, Ella breaks the silence.

"Commander?"

"..."

"Boss?"

"..."

"Rikard!" she yells at him, grabbing his arm to stop him.

He stops and turns to her.

"Are you alright?"

"No." he lowers his head. "But, I will be. Lets get this town ready, beat these blasted Vikings, and leave." he says through gritted teeth.

"Do you want to talk about?"

"No. Not yet anyway. I need some time to think." he sighs. "For now let's focus on the defenses."

"I'll be here when you are ready." her hand lingers on his arm.

"There is one thing you can do for me. Those Blackstones are going to be trouble. I can handle the dogs. I want you to take care of this Malachi."

"Its been a while since I have done a proper assassination." she smiles behind her helm. "Restrictions?"

"Use your own discretion, just make sure he knows I sent you."

Ella nods, "It will be done. Where will you be?"

"For now, I'm going to visit an old friend, near the east gate, that will be of great aid in the coming battle."

Rikard nods to her before he turns and walks deeper into the village. Ella watches him for a moment then turns and goes back to the courtyard. She spots Robert and Ives working on one of the catapults. Robert takes the bone of a turkey leg out of gear, yells at Ives, and throws it at him.

"We're trying to fix these things! Not add to our problems!" Robert yells.

"What else was I supposed to do with it?" Ives shrugs.

"Throw it in a bin! Leave it for the hounds! I don't care, as long as it is not here!"

"Oi! Shut it, the both of you!" Ella yells at both of them.

They both turn to look at her. Robert climbs downs a ladder and stands next to Ives.

"I take it the meeting went as well as yesterday." Robert states.

"Worse. Rikard is no longer a Talsmith. Lord Talsmith removed him from the family. We can't count him for any support." Ella explains

"What about the brother?"

"Unknown. He seemed to be on our side, but I'm not sure if he will go against his father or not. But, we need to take care of this Blackstone situation first. I'm taking care of this Malachi."

"Malachi?" Ives asks

"Other than the two Wardens, there is also an emissary here acting as Lord Talsmith's adviser. This adviser wanted to remove Rikard from command and take our troops for himself."

"He really thought he could get away with that?"

"I think Malachi thought Rikard would follow his father's orders. He couldn't have been more wrong. Rikard used his rank as a legion commander to take control. However we don't know if the Lawbringer will respect that authority or not. As I was saying, I'm taking care of Malachi. But, I don't trust those dogs not to try something. Ives, go meet Rikard near the east gate and stay with him. Robert take however many men you need to complete the catapults."

They both nod. Robert goes to get more men from the barracks. Ives turns to grab his shield and flail, when he turns back to ask Ella something, she is gone.

"How does she do that?"

-o0o-

 **Castle gardens**

Lady Mila Talsmith sits at a small table working on a small beaded bracelet. She looks up, as she hears a door open, to see her son Johann entering the garden with one of his captains in tow. She smiles and waves for her son over. Johann speaks to the captain, the captain nods and goes back into the castle. Johann removes his helm and takes a seat across from lady Mila, the chair creaking under the weight of the heavy armor.

"Good moring, mother. How are you today?" a maidservant places a cup in front of Johann and fills it with tea.

"I am well, Johann." she takes a sip of tea. "Although, you do seem troubled. Does it have something to do with the strange knights I've seen roaming the courtyard."

"Father hasn't told you?"

"He never came to bed last night. What should he have told me?"

"Rikard came home. He is in command of an Ash Legion company. He arrived ahead of a Viking horde coming here. I thought father would have at least mentioned that." Johann take a drink of tea.

"He did not." she takes another sip of tea. "But, it isn't the Vikings that you are concerned with at the moment."

"No, they aren't. Rikard met with father this morning to go over a plan, but with the guidance of Malachi, father stripped Rikard of the Talsmith name. Rikard threw his ring at father's feet and used his position as a legion commander to take command of all the men and preparations for our defense."

Lady Mila raises an eyebrow, "And, where do you stand on your father's decision?"

Johann thinks for a moment. "I want to respect father's wishes, but this seems to extreme. And, something Rikard said is still nagging at me. He said that Malachi and father's personal guard are of the Blackstone Legion. If that is true, they can't be trusted. I will need to investigate this to find the truth."

The maidservant fills Lady Mila's teacup. "Thank you Claire. I would like to see Rikard regardless of what your father says. Can you find him for me?"

"Yes, I will. I have a feeling I know where he is heading. If he is setting up our defenses, I know he is going to want to add a little extra kick." Johann stands, taking his helm. "May you have a pleasant morning, mother."

Lady Mila watches her son leave the gardens before going back to work on her bracelet.

-o0o-

 **Talsmith village, East gate**

Rikard approaches a large stone building set apart from the surrounding buildings. He knocks on the door. No answer. He knocks again, louder. Silence. He tries to open the door and it slowly creaks open. Rikard enters a large darkened room.

"Victor? Victor are you here?"

Rikard hears the sound of shattering glass and a muffled voice coming from a backroom.

"Ah dammit! Who's there?"

"Victor you old sod! It's me, your favorite student."

"Student? No, no, I'm not taking on any students! Not since they stopped my research."

"Just come out here, I need to talk to you."

An old man with frazzled gray hair, and a pair of thick spectacles over small beady eyes peers through a door leading to a backroom. He studies Rikard for a moment.

"I have no need for a Warden, please leave." he begins to close the door.

"Victor, wait a moment." Rikard interrupts and removes his helm. "I need to speak to you about your work."

The small, frail, old man adjusts his glasses and studies the Warden's face. Rikard sees recognition in the old man's eyes as his face lights up.

"Ha! Ha, ha! Rikard, it has been to long." the old man quickly shuffles over to Rikard and shakes his hand.

Rikard smiles. "Victor it is good to see you. Now what's this about stopping you research?"

"Bah! Since you left nobody has been interested in the powder, especially after I lost half my shop. But, you are here now, you must have need of it, yes? Yes? You need my black powder."

"That I do. A rather nasty group of Vikings are on their way here; and I need something that will dissuade them from trying to come back."

"Hmm.. What do you need, smoke, flash, fire, explosion? Hmm, hm, what do you need?"

"Any and everything you have. It is a large group of Vikings."

Victor smiles giddily, "Come, come this way. Follow me." he says, practically skipping towards the back store room.

Rikard follows and as he enters the massive store room he sees racks, shelves, crates, boxes, and barrels all filled with various bombs, grenades, kegs, and satchels of all shapes and sizes of exsplosives.

"Bloody hell, Victor! There's enough here to blow up half the town!"

"Heh, heh, heh, that Lawbringer told me to stop, but I never did." Victor grins madly.

"I'm going to need to bring some of my men to transport all this, but we need to get the townsfolk out of certain areas before we for set everything up. Can you get everything ready to transport by this evening?"

"Yes, yes, will have everything ready. Now go, go, I have work to do." Victor waves his hand towards the door.

"Thank you, Victor. I will return soon." Rikard puts his helm on and turns to exit, but stops at one of the stocked shelves. "I'm taking a few of these with me." he says, grabbing a half dozen small explosives.

"Fine, fine, go ahead." Victor says waving dismissively at him.

As Rikard exits the storehouse, he spots Ives wandering around nearby and goes over to him. "Ives, what are you doing here? I thought you were helping Robert with the catapults?"

"I was, but Ella came up and ordered me to stick with you today." Ives leans in and whispers, "Something about not trusting the Blackstones. Then she did her vanishing act."

"Ah, I see. Well, I've had a shit morning and need a drink. There's a decent tavern down the road."

"Now that is a plan I can get behind. Get good and day drunk. Lead the way." Ives pats Rikard on the back as they head towards the tavern.

As they walk down the road, two Wardens watch them closely and begin to follow.

-o0o-

 **Talsmith village**

Johann makes his way towards the market intent on finding his brother. However, before he could get very far a large group of people stop him.

"Lord Johann, why are there Ash Legion troops here?" a merchant asks.

"I've seen them roaming the town. Asking for any supplies they can use." another man says.

"They were wounded when they arrived. Are we in danger?" a woman nervously asks.

"I heard some of them talking about Vikings about to attack." someone yells from the back of the crowd.

Johann raises his hands to calm the crowd. "Please, please calm yourselves. Yes, a company of Ash Legion arrived yesterday. They recently encountered a Viking war band, which we believe is heading this way. We are currently working with the Ash Legion to strengthen our defenses and..."

"What about us?" a man yells.

"The town walls can't stand an assault! Are you going to hold up in your castle, while we die out here?" another man yells.

The crowd begins to yells at Johann, dozens of voices wash over each other.

"People please..." he tries to calm the crowd but his voice gets lost in the noise.

"Silence, all of you!" a commanding voice shouts over the crowd and they fall silent.

Johann looks up to see Rikard and his Conqueror friend standing before the crowd. The crowd parts as Rikard walks up to join Johann.

"I am Commander Rikard of the Ash Legion. There are Vikings coming here. We are reinforcing the castle defenses and will set traps in town for the coming Vikings." Rikard calmly says.

"What about us?" a farmer asks.

Rikard looks to the man. "All the people will be moved to the castle. We will be placing explosives around town as well as firing upon the Vikings while they raid the buildings."

"You're going to blow up our homes?!"

"You are going to destroy everything we have!"

Rikard raises a hand and the crowd quiets down. "Homes can be rebuilt. Fields resown. What matters is you, the people we are fighting for. If you are safe, then our fighting, our sacrifices have meaning." Rikard motions to Johann. "Please follow your Lawbringer's instructions. If there is any able bodied man willing to fight please talk to the Lawbringer. Limit yourselves to one bag of anything essential. When the order is given make your way calmly, but quickly, to the castle." Rikard bows his head to the crowd, then rejoins Ives, and they continue on their way.

Johann pushes his way through the crowd. "Rikard! Rikard, hold a moment."

Rikard stops and turns to Johann. "What do you need, Johann?"

Johann pauses for a moment. "Um... Mother wished to see you."

"Thank you for relaying the message. I will see her when I have a moment, but right now Ives and I have some business to attend to."

"Brother, are you alright?"

Rikard sighs. "Do you agree with Lord Talsmith? Should I have handed over command to this adviser?"

"I don't believe your men would just follow Malachi." Johann looks to the Conqueror, who shakes his head. "But, I don't know if I can go against father's decision. To disregard father like that, I'm not sure I can."

"When will you step out of father's shadow? Make your own choices? We might not have much longer to make that choice. You will always be my brother, Johann, but I can't stay here if that" he points towards the castle, "man can't stand the sight of me. Now, we will reconvene later, and don't give Victor to hard of a time when you see him."

Rikard and Ives continue to their business, leaving Johann to tend to the crowd.

-o0o-

 **Talsmith castle**

Ella slowly walks through a darkened corridor in Talsmith castle, stalking her target. She freezes when a door ahead of her opens, a maid carrying a basket of laundry steps out and walks away from her. She stands motionless as the maid walks down the hall and around a corner. Ella stalks up to the junction in the corridor and peers around the corner. Ella looks to the right seeing the maid go on her way, to the left the it continues into darkness. Ella goes left, passing several closed doors, she stops to listen briefly before moving on.

Ella had been following Malachi for some time now, but lost sight of him when he came down to this level of the castle. She hears muffled voices from a door ahead of her. Ella stops and listens for a moment. The voice is Malachi, but she can't place the other one. She tries the door but it is locked. She takes out a lock pick from a pouch on her belt and goes to work, a soft click lets her know she's in. Ella slowly opens the door to peer into the room. She catches sight of Malachi facing away from the door at the far end of the room. Ella enters the room, closing the door as quietly as possible, she then quickly ducks behind a desk.

"I commend you on your loyalty to your master, but perhaps you should give me the information I seek. If you do I will be sure to end it quickly." Malachi threatens.

"Anata wa nani mo enaideshou, okubyōmono! Watashi o koroshi, sore de owara sete kudasai!"

Ella raises an eyebrow _'A Samurai? What are you doing here?"_

She stands from behind the desk, slowly drawing her dagger, and creeps up behind Malachi.

"Speak a proper language!" Malachi backhands the man bound by chains to a wooden table.

The Samurai spits blood and looks back to Malachi, but notices Ella behind him. She raises a finger to her lips. The bound man gives an almost imperceptible nod to her.

"Anata wa kono sekai no tame ni nagaku wa inai, rōjin. Anata wa anata ga shinjiru don'na kami to demo heiwa o tamotsu koto o o susume shimasuga, anata no kēsude wa, anata ga hai kai shita don'na yogore demo anata ga kusatta koto o negatte imasu."

"What are you saying? Make some sense you damn fool!"

Ella lunges forward, plunging her dagger into Malachi's back. He gasps and falls forward. The Samurai headbutts him as Ella grabs Malachi and forces him to his knees.

Malachi looks up to Ella, "You. You're one of those fools following the Talsmith pup. You won't get away with this. I already sent my men to take care of him. He won't last the day."

Ella tilts her head, "Your dogs won't be of a concern. Now, what to do with you. My mentor taught me how to cause the maximum amount of pain without killing the target."

She stabs him in the shoulder and he lets out yell of pain.

"What do you want? Riches? I can make you the wealthiest woman in all Ashfeld. A lordship? How about this castle? Bromhill was useful for a while, but you would be valued among the Blackstone Legion. What is it? What do you want? I can make it happen." Malachi pleads.

Ella leans in close, "You corrupted the wrong family. Rikard Talsmith, commander of the Ash Legion, sends his regards. May he repair the damage you have done."

Malachi's eyes go wide as Ella slits his throat. She watches him as he falls forward clutching his neck. She waits til there is no sign of life, then kicks him for good measure.

Ella goes to the Samurai chained to the table and looks him over. He is beaten, bloodied, and cut up. _'He's been tortured for days. He won't last much longer.'_

"Watashi o kaihō shite kudasai. Please release me." the Samurai says with a weak voice.

"How do you know I won't just kill you?"

"You killed my captor. The enemy of my enemy. Besides I am not long for this world, I just wish to die on my own terms."

Ella nods and begins to release the man from his chains. "Are there any more of you being held here?"

"There were eight of us being held in the dungeon, but that was days ago." he rubs his wrists as Ella removes the manacles. He swings his legs over the table and tries to stand but stumbles, Ella catches him and helps him kneel on the ground.

He holds a hand out to Ella. "May I use your tantō, your blade." Ella tilts her head at him. "Let me die with my honor."

She nods and spins her dagger in her hand, offering him the hilt. He takes the dagger and places it against his abdomen.

"You have my thanks." He plunges the dagger into his abdomen and jerks it to his right. His blood spills forth and he slumps forward.

Ella waits for a few moments in silence before she lays the Samurai on his back. She takes her dagger, wipes the blood off on Malachi's robes. She salutes the Samurai.

"May you find peace with your ancestors." she quietly says with a bow of her head.

-o0o-

 **Warden's Rest tavern, Talsmith**

"And that's when he turns to me and says 'That's not a cow. That's my wife.'" Ives loudly says earning laughs from the surrounding patrons.

Rikard takes another sip of ale as he listens to Ives tell the locals of some of the shenanigans he and his team have gotten into. He finishes his drink and gets up from the bar.

"Hey, hey boss where you going? We're supposed to stick together." Ives says about to chug his drink.

"Don't worry. I'm just going to get some air. Here" Rikard places some coins on the bar. "Next round is on me."

Ives raises his tankard. "Thanks boss."

Rikard grabs his helm from the bar and exits the tavern. He walks for a few minutes before turning down an alley. He waits as he hears footsteps approaching him. Rikard looks back to see the two Blackstone Wardens. He puts his helm on and draws his sword.

"Alright, is this where we're going to do this, lads." Rikard coldly says as the Wardens rush him.

-o0o-

 **Author's Note**

Thanks to everyone who has read this, and thanks to **KiloActual** and **PatMS** for following.

I hope y'all are enjoying it so far. I'll see you next time.

N7Gundam


	6. Chapter 6: Framhlið

**Chapter 6: F** **ramhlið**

 **Talsmith village, Fireshelf, Ashfeld**

"So, are we doing this with or without honor?" Rikard asks the two Blackstone Wardens.

They say nothing and charge Rikard.

"Guess it's without then."

Rikard rushes forward to meet them, raising his longsword above his head, and striking at the Warden to his right. The attack is blocked, but Rikard uses the momentum to swing his sword back around to strike again. Catching the Warden with his guard down, Rikard lands a solid hit and the Warden staggers back. He notices the boars head painted on the Warden's pauldron and labels him Boar.

Rikard quickly brings his sword to his left blocking a pair of slashes aimed to his flank. Rikard sees a flared star on this Warden's tabard and labels him Star. Rikard parries a heavy strike and kicks Star in the stomach, pushing him back.

"Te secabo!" Boar yells, as he lands a slash on Rikard's arm.

 _'Damn!'_ Rikard takes a step back. He feels his right arm get wet as blood spills from the wound. He parries a strike from Star and shoves him into the wall. He then turns and rams his shoulder into Boar shoving him back. Rikard takes advantage of the gap and dashes between them and towards the road. He reaches into the pouch on his belt and throws small orb at the feet of the Wardens. There is a flash of white light, blinding the Wardens. When the light subsides Rikard turns to face them, his blade ready in a top guard position as he steps backwards into the open road.

Boar and Star shake their heads trying to regain their senses. Star sees Rikard backing up to the road and shoves Boar in that direction. The two Blackstones enter the roadway and try to flank Rikard. A woman screams from behind Rikard and he hears her run away them. Boar strikes out from Rikard's left, he blocks it then swings right towards Star. Rikard catches him off guard, breaks his stance, and kicks him in the gut pushing him back. Rikard takes a few steps back and readies himself, when he sees a large figure heading towards him and the Wardens.

"Halt! What is going on here?" Johann yells holding his poleaxe at the ready.

"Lawbringer, by order of Lord Talsmith and emissary Malachi, this Warden is to be subdued and taken for questioning." Boar answers.

Johann looks from the two Wardens to Rikard.

"That moment we talked about, Johann, this is it. Bist du bei mir, Bruder?" Rikard says to Johann.

"Very well, let us end this."

Johann faces Rikard, raises his poleaxe, and brings it down on Boar. Rikard rushes Star, getting between him and Johann. Caught completely off guard, Boar takes the brunt of Johann's attack nearly losing an arm. Rikard strikes out at Star's flank, making a deep wound in his side. Boar looks up to see a poleaxe rushing towards him.

"Tod für meinen Feind!" Johann shouts as he brings the poleaxe down striking Boar in the shoulder, causing him to drop his longsword. Johann then brings the back end of his poleaxe across Boar's helm, digging deep into the metal and forcing him to one knee. Johann hits Boar under the chin with the hammer side of the poleaxe head, knocking Boar on his back. Boar rolls over an tries to crawl away but Johann brings the axe head back down into the center of Boar's back. Johann raises his weapon and looks down at the motionless body.

Rikard parries a blow from Star, creating an opening. "Erbärmlich!" Rikard thrust his longsword into Star's chest. He slams his shoulder into Star, shoving him off the blade, grabs his sword at the middle of the blade and swings the guard at Star's neck, tearing out most of his throat. Star grabs his neck and quickly bleeds out as he falls to the ground.

The brothers pause for a moment before they turn to eachother.

"Thanks for the assist." Rikard says catching his breath.

"What the hell was that?"

"Exactly what it looks like. They were here to kill me, most likely at Malachi's order."

"They said father sent them to subdue you."

"I highly doubt that. Malachi has been calling the shots, probably since he arrived." Rikard says as he places a hand over the wound on his arm.

Ives comes running up to the brothers followed by several Ash Legion soldiers.

"Boss, are you alright?" Ives asks, glaring at the Lawbringer.

"Yes, we are fine here." Rikard answers as kneels next to the Blackstones and yanks their legion medallions from around their necks. Rikard stands, "Take anything of worth off these two then get rid of the bodies."

"You got it, boss. Just don't tell Ella that I was drinking instead of watching your back." Ives looks over the two Wardens and pockets anything of interest.

Rikard turns and starts walking towards the castle

Johann watches in disgust as the former criminal loots the two dead Wardens, before he turns and follows his brother. "What should we do with Malachi? He will know his attempt failed soon enough."

"There is no need to worry about him. It is already being taken care of."

Johann sighs, "Let me guess, your Peacekeeper friend."

"Aye, my Peacekeeper."

The brothers continue their walk to the castle in silence.

-o0o-

 **Talsmith Castle**

Ella holds a Blackstone Legion medallion and studies it for a moment before she puts it in her pouch. She looks back at the body of Malachi, lying on the floor, and to the Samurai warrior, that she placed a sheet over. She exits the room into the darkened hall, carefully looking for anyone nearby. She closes the door behind her and cautiously makes her way towards the courtyard. She darts between rooms and corridors dodging the guards and staff.

Ella pauses, in the shadows of a dark corridor, as a regal looking woman, in a blue and white flowing dress, and her maidservant pass by her. The woman stops and looks over her shoulder, directly in Ella's direction, then continues on her way, the maidservant dutifully following. Ella feels a chill go down her spine as she watches the woman walk away. Once Ella regains her composure she makes her way to the courtyard.

When she enters the courtyard, she sees Robert and twenty or so men working on the catapults. As she approaches Robert she hears him shouting instructions to the men.

"Yes, there. Make sure the tension is correct, otherwise this thing will only launch itself into the air." Robert turns to look at the catapult schematics laying on a crate and sees Ella coming towards him. "I take it you were successful."

Ella waves a dismissive hand, "But of course. Who do you think I am."

"Do I even want to know?" Robert says shaking his head.

"Don't worry. Nothing improper on my part."

He looks up from the schematics, "What does that mean?"

"I'll explain when we meet with Rikard." She notices Rikard and the Lawbringer walk through the courtyard gate. "Which will be soon, I'm guessing." She walks off towards Rikard.

"Oh, don't mind me. I'll just be here working on the war machines. Not like I wanted to know what is going on around here." Robert mumbles to himself.

As Ella approaches the brothers, she notices the wound on Rikard's arm. She falls in step with them, "I see the dogs have been put down."

"That they have." Rikard says, holding up the two Blackstone medallions. "Johann was very helpful in that endeavor. I take it you had no difficulties on your end?"

Ella shows another medallion and hands it to Rikard. "You know me, no troubles. The Lawbringer? What about Ives?"

"Ives is cleaning up. He'll return soon."

"I did discover that Malachi has been torturing prisoners. I found him interrogating a Samurai. The warrior didn't make."

"We don't have any Samurai prisoners. Just some thieves and a drunkard." Johann interrupts.

Rikard stops and looks to Johann. "Blackstones aren't known for their hospitality. Could they have captured anyone without you knowing?"

"No. I check the dungeon daily, and have guards posted throughout the day."

"Well," Ella interjects, "The Samurai's last words were about seven others locked in the dungeon."

"We will go to the dungeon in a bit, but first we need to speak with Lord Talsmith." Rikard says as they make their way into the castle.

-o0o-

 **Lord Talsmith's study**

Bromhill sits at his desk staring at an empty bottle of wine.

"I've sentenced my own son to death. Well, I guess he's not my son anymore."

He picks up the signet ring that Rikard threw at his feet. He rubs his temples to try and relieve himself of a coming headache.

"Why did I ever take the Blackstone's deal?!"

He grabs the wine bottle and throws it at the wall, it shatters into pieces scattering across the room. The door to his study slowly opens a guard carefully steps into the study.

"My lord?"

"Yes, what is it?"

"Your presence is needed in the great hall."

"By who?"

"Lawbringer Talsmith, my lord, and the Ash Legion commander."

"I'll be down in a moment." Bromhill tells the guard.

"Of course, my lord." the guard exits the study and closes the door.

 _'Rikard still lives!'_

Bromhill sits in his chair in an attempt to compose himself. After a few minutes Bromhill leaves his study. He turns to the guard outside his door.

"Gather the guards to the great hall." He orders.

"My lord?"

"Just do as I say!"

"Yes, my lord."

-o0o-

 **Great Hall**

Johann, Rikard, and Ella stand in the great hall waiting for Lord Talsmith to arrive. They all turn to look at the side door opening to see Lady Mila Talsmith and her maidservant enter the hall. Johann and Rikard both remove their helms as Mila walks towards them.

"Mother, what are you doing here?" Johann asks

"With all the commotion going on and hearing that both my boys were going to be here, I had to stop by." She looks to Rikard, "It is good to see you, Rikard." She opens her arms.

Rikard leans in and hugs her, "Mother, it has been far to long. I have missed you."

Rikard takes a step back, as Lady Mila gives Ella a curious glance. "And who is this?"

Ella bows her head, "I am Ella, your grace, Peacekeeper of the Ash Legion."

"That you are." Lady Mila says raising an eyebrow. She looks to her sons, "Your father should be down shortly."

They both nod as Lady Mila turns and takes her place in the seat next to Bromhill's throne.

As they wait, Ella sees Rikard scratching at the wound on his arm. She slaps his hand to make him stop. He looks to her and shrugs his shoulders.

"What?"

"Stop that, you'll make it worse. Once we're done here Aveline is going to have a look at it."

"As you wish."

From her seat, Lady Mila watches them with an amused and knowing smile.

After several minutes Lord Bromhill enters the great hall and takes a seat on his throne. "What news do you bring today? More Vikings are on the way?"

"Actually," Rikard holds up the three Blackstone medallions. "I believe we have taken care of your Blackstone infestation. Nothing binds you to them anymore."

"Then there is only one thing left to do." Bromhill stands. "Guards!"

Thirty guards begin to file into the room. Ella draws her blades. Rikard holds his arm out in front of Ella, taking a defensive posture. Johann readies his poleaxe.

"Father!" Johann yells.

Bromhill steps down from the dais. "Calm yourselves, my boys. This is not a threat." he says as he walks towards them.

Johann relaxes his stance, but Rikard and Ella stay on guard.

"What I have done can not be easily forgiven. I was tempted with riches and power in exchange for helping our enemy. And, I succumbed to that temptation."

Rikard looks to Ella and nods. They both go to a more relaxed stance, but Ella still has her blades at the ready.

Bromhill stands before Johann. "I lost sight of what a lord is supposed to do. Protect the people of his land. As of now I am stepping down as lord of Talsmith castle and its lands. Johann, you are now Lord Johann Talsmith, Lawbringer, commander, and protector of this realm."

"Father, I..."

Bromhill raises his hand to stop Johann. Then he goes to stand before Rikard.

"Rikard, my son, I had no right to take your name." Bromhill holds out the signet ring. "If you want it, you may have it. You are a Talsmith. You always have been, and you always will be."

Rikard looks to the offered ring and closes his father's hand around the it. "Not yet. I haven't been a Talsmith for years. You were against me fighting abroad so I never told anyone who I was. Let me defend my home. Show you how capable I..." he looks to Ella, "We can be. If I live through this and you still feel the same way, we'll talk about it. Perhaps you can regain your own honor in this battle. But for now, we have people who need protection and a battle to win." Rikard puts his helm on and looks to Johann. "Lawbringer, you're men need orders."

"Men!" Johann shouts to the gathered guards. "Assist the Ash Legion with whatever they need. Warden?"

"Gather your officers, I'll gather mine, and we'll meet here in an hour"

Johann nods and then motions to several of the guards to follow him as he exits the great hall. Rikard watches Johann leave then turns to Lord and Lady Talsmith.

"Father, mother." Rikard nods to both of them before putting his helm on and walking out of the great hall.

Ella sheathes her blades and follows Rikard. Talsmith soldiers begin to rush around them, carrying out orders from the Lawbringer or his officers. Rikard stops in the foyer and takes a deep breath,placing is hands on his hips.

"Well, that was unexpected." he says.

"I'm still wary of this whole thing." Ella say walking up next to him. "Bromhill seemed to change his mind to quickly. I don't trust him just yet."

"Do you trust me?" Rikard asks looking to her.

"Of course!" Ella loudly answers, surprising both Rikard and herself.

Rikard chuckles to himself and places a hand on her shoulder. "Then trust me. The Talsmiths are allies, at least until we get rid of these Vikings. Now we need to gather the others. Go round them up and meet back here. I'll stay and start the preparations."

Ella gives him a blank stare.

"Please, Peacekeeper Ella of the Ash Legion, slayer of Blackstone zealots, hero of the second... no third battle of the Crow's path. Would you do me the honor of gathering the others and escorting them here?" Rikard asks with a wave of his hands and a deep bow.

Ella taps on the back of Rikard's helm. "Since you asked so nicely and I was heading in that direction anyway, I'll go get the others."

"Thank you, my lady." Rikard says rising from his bow. Only to be met with a dagger pointed to his throat.

"How many times have I told you not to call me that."

"I stopped counting after a while."

"Then cease."

"As you wish"

She taps the side of his helm with her dagger. "Good Warden." She sheathes her dagger and exits the castle.

Rikard watches her leave before he turns his attention to a soldier near him. "You there."

The man approaches Rikard. "Yes Commander?"

"Bring a table in here, preferably a large one. We'll also need a detailed map of the village as well as a map of the surrounding area, some blank pages, and a quill with some ink."

"At once Commander." The soldier salutes and runs off to gather the items.

" _I still need to check on the dungeon. See if there are any Samurai down there."_ Rikard's thoughts are interupted by a stifled laugh. Rikard turns around to see his mother and her maidservant standing behind him.

"I'm glad to see that you found some enjoyment out of this war you have been fighting." Mila says with a warm smile.

"Heh, you saw that, did you?" Rikard says removing his helm.

"That I did. Now I know you are busy, but I just wanted to tell you that you should check in with the smiths at the forges. They may have something special for you."

"Thank you, mother. I will go when I have a free moment."

"Commander?" A soldier interrupts them.

"Apologies mother, but it seems duty calls."

"It is fine. No matter the circumstances, I am glad you are home." Lady Mila kisses Rikard's cheek before going deeper into the castle.

-o0o-

 **Barracks**

Ella enters the barracks to find Aveline tending to the wounded and Ives sitting at a table eating a stew of some sort.

She shakes her head, "Every time I find you, you seem to be stuffing your face."

Ives looks up from the stew, "What? I need to keep my strength up. You know how heavy that shield is?"

"Fine. Don't blame me when you get fat and slow. Anyway, finish up. Rikard wants us at the castle." Ella looks over to Aveline. "You too, Aveline. All hands for this one. Have you seen Lambert recently?"

Aveline walks over grabbing her sword and helm. "I haven't seen him since this morning. He was scouting the village. He should be returning soon."

They exit the barracks, Ives following behind draining the last bit of stew from his bowl.

"So what's all this about?" Ives asks, wiping some stew from his chin.

"It is complicated, but for the moment we have the full support of the Talsmiths. Rikard wants a meeting between us and the Lawbringer's officers to plan our defense."

They enter the courtyard and see Lambert and Robert looking over the catapult schematics. Ella catches Robert's attention and motions for them to follow. Robert and Lambert fall in step with the others.

"You called?" Robert asks.

"Rikard wants us for a war meeting." Ella answers as they enter the castle.

-o0o-

 **Fireshelf Wilderness**

A group of Viking scouts watches Talsmith village from the tree line. Keen eyes watching, tracking the Knights movements along the walls and through the city. A scout approaches the shield maiden.

"Þeir hafa enn ekki lagt á varnir. Þeir eru viðkvæmir. Við ættum að fara núna." He says to her.

The woman adjusts her shield and looks to the sky. " Ekki enn, vakandi auga. Framhliðin mun vera hér fljótlega."

-o0o-

 **Author's Note:**

Thanks everyone for reading. Sorry it has taken so long to update. Life seems to be getting in the way.

I also want to thank **ajna12, Blitzkrieg123, CommanderNova702, Crayer, LastheJihadist, and Lawrence Cartwright** for following. Thanks again and I see y'all next time.


	7. Chapter 7: Prepare

**Chapter 7: Prepare**

 **Talsmith Castle**

Johann enters the grand foyer, with several of his officers following, to find Rikard and his subordinates surrounding a large table with maps and papers strewn about it. Several helms sitting on the table before their respective owners. Rikard's right arm is unarmored as the female Warden wraps a bandage around his wounded arm.

"Rikard." Johann say to get his brother's attention.

He looks up from the map, looking over the men with his brother. "Johann. These your best men?"

"They are. These are my best captains. Rynard, Jessop, Vicar, and Margrave." The men all nod as their name is called.

Rikard nods. "Good to meet you. I am Commander Rikard. These are my subordinates Lawbringer Robert, Peacekeeper Ella, Conqueror Ives, Wardens Lambert and Aveline. If Lord Talsmith or myself are unavailable, you will report to one of them. Understood?"

"Yes Commander." One of the captains, Margrave, answers.

"Lambert, have you decided where to place the explosives?"

"Yes, depending on how much we can get, I recommend placing them here, here, and here." Lambert answers pointing at the map. "If we have enough, I would like to put some in the market. The Vikings always go for the market."

"Don't worry, we definitely have enough explosives." Aveline taps Rikard's arm, he lowers it and begins putting his glove and gauntlet on. "Johann, have one of your men take Lambert to Victor's. He is expecting you.

Johann nods, "Jessop, you're on it."

"Yes, my lord."

"Our gear is a bit run down." Rikard continues. "Johann, we need any weapons and armor you have to get back in fighting shape, as well as arming any volunteers from the town."

"Margrave, go to the forges. Have the smiths bring out everything they have." Johann orders.

"Yes sir."

"I think we may have your legion's colors too." Johann adds.

Rikard nods, "The vanguard will be here soon enough. Robert, Aveline, start moving our men into position. Those that are wounded move them into the great hall. I want our archers along the outer courtyard wall. Lambert, I want you and your squads on the wall to repel climbers and man the ballista. Work with Jensen."

"I'm sorry, sir. But, Jensen passed this morning." Aveline interrupts.

Rikard sighs heavily, "Robert."

Robert takes a large tome from his belt, opens it, takes a quill from the table, and makes some notes. "His family will be notified if able. He will be honored, not forgotten."

"Honored, not forgotten." All the Ash Legion officers say in unison, as Robert closes the book.

"Who is our next marksman?" Rikard asks.

"That would be Patrik." Aveline answers. "He has already stepped up to take Jensen's place."

"Lambert, coordinate with Patrik and the archers."

"Aye, sir."

"I have no doubt that there are Viking scouts already watching the town. We need to start moving the townsfolk to the castle. The people trust you and your men more than mine. Have them start escorting the people here. If there are any volunteers we will gladly take them."

"Rynard, Vicar, start moving the people. They are to be limited to one bag of only essentials." Johann orders.

"At once, sir." Rynard answers.

"Ella, assist them if needed." She nods in response. "Now, when the battle starts, the Ash Legion will take the front lines. Lambert on the wall. Robert, Ives and myself will be ready to reinforce the wall and be ready for when they breach the gate. Aveline, Ella, you will be at our rear, reinforcing where needed. Robert, are the catapults ready?"

"As ready as they are going to be. I've already set up teams to operate them." Robert answers.

Rikard nods. "Very good. Johann, your men will be at the inner wall. Any archers you can get will be atop the wall. Captains, you and your squads will stand at the ready to reinforce our flanks."

"Yes, commander." Vicar answers.

"This is going to sound grim, but this battle does not look good for us. We are severely outnumbered by a savage foe. Our backs are to the wall and aid from the other legions seems unlikely. So we are going to cheat. The explosives in town, and the catapults will help thin their numbers, but it won't be enough to stop them. Each of us are going to be carrying some form of grenades to use as we see fit. We will place explosives around the courtyard as well for when we get pushed back. Unfortunately, casualties will be unavoidable."

"You are ready to kill our own people?!" Margrave interrupts.

Rikard gives the captain a cold glare. "I don't make this choice lightly. Our purpose is to protect those that can't protect themselves. We are the shield of iron and blood that stands between our enemies and our families. It is my men that are going to take the brunt of the attack. If our sacrifice means that the innocents live, then so be it. It would do you well to remember the oath you have taken as a Knight. Besides, if those explosives go off it means my men and I are already dead, and I won't care either way what you think. Understood, soldier."

The captain takes a step back in silence.

"Now, go tend to your assignments. Johann, Ives, stay a moment." Rikard orders.

The officers all file out to tend to their tasks.

"Is he going to be a problem, Johann?" Rikard asks, nodding in the direction Margrave went.

"Margrave has always been outspoken, and I believe he is nervous about the coming battle. He'll do his duty."

"Very well." Rikard takes his helm from the table. "Now we need to see about these Samurai prisoners."

Rikard begins to walk towards the dungeon, Johann and Ives following.

"I still don't think there are any down there." Johann says resting his poleaxe on his shoulder.

"Well, you did have three Blackstones here and didn't know a thing about them. I don't find it hard to believe that they have captives that you don't know about." Ives retorts.

Johann stops in his tracks and grabs the Conqueror's shoulder. "Watch your mouth, you criminal scum, or I'll..."

Ives shrugs off the Lawbringer's hand. "Or you'll what? I don't answer to you. Besides, I earned my freedom long ago."

"Enough, both of you!" Rikard yells.

They both turn to him.

Rikard sighs. "We have enough to worry about without you two coming to blows! Johann, if Ives wanted to run he could have done so long before now. If he wanted to kill anyone of us he would have done so years ago. He is here because he is a free man that has chosen to be here. He has fought by my side for years, and has proven himself more than worthy to stand before you."

"Rikard, I..." Johann begins.

"And Ives, you know better than to antagonize every bloody Lawbringer you come across."

"Yes sir. Sorry sir." Ives says looking at the dirt.

"Besides, Ives does make a good point. Blackstones have been here for a while. And, have been conducting activities without your knowledge." Rikard continues to walk toward the dungeon.

"But, I have men standing guard over the dungeon."

"A man's loyalty can be bought for the right price. Our father is proof of that. I would recommend doing a thorough investigation of your forces, but at the moment we have more pressing things to worry about." Rikard stops before the door leading down to the dungeon. "After you, Johann."

Johann enters the dungeon to find two guards sitting at a small table. One asleep with his feet up on the table. The other downing the contents of a tankard.

Rikard stops at Johann's side. "I see you put some of your best men on this."

"Look alive you two!" Johann yells.

The sleeping guard is startled and falls out of his chair. The other chokes on his drink and begins coughing. Ives chuckles at them before they straighten themselves out and stand at attention.

"Sir!" one of them says.

Johann sighs. "Just give me the keys to the cells and go report to Captain Jessop."

"Yes sir!" "At once my lord!" They both say before handing Johann the keys and exiting the dungeon.

"Well, that just fills me with confidence." Ives says.

"Come on. Follow me." Johann mumbles.

The three go down the stairs deeper into the dungeon. Until they come to a long hall with barred cells on each side.

"Alright you lot! Wake up! To the bars all of you!" Johann yells,his voice echoing through the stone hall.

"Piss off!" One of the prisoners yells.

"Listen up." Rikard orders, as he walks up and down the hall of cells. " I am Commander Rikard of the Ash Legion. Right now you have two options. Option one, you can stay here. Living out your punishment for theft, drunkenness, and murder. Possibly being killed or left to die in those cells by the Viking horde that's on its way. Option two, you are released into the custody of the Ash Legion. You fight to earn your freedom, adventure, some decent coin, and all the Vikings you could possibly ever want to kill." Rikard stops in the center of the hall. "Now, all for option one?"

Rikard is answered with silence.

"All for option two?"

A dozen hands reach through the bars.

"Good. Release them."

Johann goes and opens the cells one by one. The prisoners all line up outside of their cells.

"This is Conqueror Ives, you will be under his command. Welcome to the Ash Legion. Ives."

"C'mon you lot. Let's get you cleaned up and a meal in you." Ives says as he walks back up the stairs.

The former prisoners file out, following Ives. Rikard studying them as they leave.

"Well they're a bit scrawny." Rikard notes.

"I don't like this, Rikard. They could turn on us at any moment."

"And where they go? The woods are crawling with Vikings, and we need everyone that can hold a blade."

"If you say so, but that was all the cells. Not a single Samurai among them." Johann says, leaning against the wall.

"That may be, but there was the Samurai that Ella encountered. His last words being of his fellows." Rikard says as he examines one of the cells.

"We're wasting time. We should..."

The sound of stone grinding against stone echoes through the dungeon as a stone gives way under Johann's shoulder. Rikard and Johann both look at the stone for a moment, before a section of wall shakes and swings slightly inward.

"A secret door in a dungeon. That always bodes well." Rikard says as he pushes against the stone door.

A set of stairs leads down into the darkness. Rikard and Johann each take a torch from the wall and head down into the darkness.

"I have a bad feeling about this." Johann whispers.

"Now, why would you say that. You don't tempt fate like that. We're probably walking straight into a hellmouth, now." Rikard whispers back.

They continue until they reach the bottom of the stairs. They both wait, listening to the darkness around them. It doesn't take long before they begin to hear whispers nearby.

"I swear, if a demon eats my face off, I'm coming back to haunt you." Rikard says before going further into the room.

At the edge of the torch light, the bars of a cell come into view. They reach the bars and see several shadowed forms in the cell.

"Hello?" Rikard calls out to them. "We mean you no harm. We found your friend. He told us you were here. The ones responsible have been put to the sword."

One of the forms quickly rushes to the bars. "Watashitachiha hitoride wa arimasen!" He points behind them. "Soko! Kanojo wa soko ni iru!"

Johann and Rikard turn to look behind them as a sword and dagger strike from the darkness. "Peri!" The brothers jump back from each other, dodging the attack. Dropping their torches and readying their weapons, the brothers face a Peacekeeper wearing Blackstone colors.

The Peacekeeper strikes out at Rikard. He blocks the attack. Johann moves to attack, but the Peacekeeper deftly dodges. Rikard kicks the Peacekeeper in the midsection, pushing her back towards the cell. She readies her attack, as a large arm reaches through the bars, taking her by the throat, and slams her back against the bars. The Peacekeeper struggles for a moment before there is a quick movement of the arm and an audible crack, as the Peacekeeper goes motionless and falls to the floor.

Rikard picks up his torch and approaches the cell. The torch light illuminating a large man, at least a head taller than himself and possibly several inches taller than Johann. "You're a big one."

"Hiretsuna kishi." The man says as he goes deeper into the cell.

"Kon'nichiwa? Daijōbu?" Rikard asks.

A different figure stands and approaches the bars. As he enters the torch light, Rikard sees an older man standing before him.

"Dōyō ni kitai dekiru. Anata wa orenji no akuma to dōmeide wa arimasen ka?" The man says.

"Please slow down. I'm afraid I have exhausted my Japanese. Do you know the common tongue?" Rikard asks.

"Yes, I do." The man says. "You are not with these dogs?" He nods towards the Peacekeeper.

"No, they were Blackstone loyalist. We killed three others just this morning. I am Commander Rikard of the Ash Legion. This is Lord Talsmith."

"I am Onaga, these are my men. You said you found another?"

"Yes." Rikard kneels down to the fallen Blackstone and begins searching for a key to the cell. "My Peacekeeper found him being tortured by Malachi, their leader. I'm sorry, hid wounds were to great. He took his own life rather than suffer."

"Chikushō!" Onaga yells, punching the bars.

Rikard finds the keys and goes to open the cell, but Johann grabs his arm stopping him.

"Rikard, are you sure about this? I let you conscript the others but this is too far. The Samurai are our enemy." Johann warns.

He pulls his arm from Johann's grasp. "You let me conscript them? Don't make me pull rank on you, brother. These people have done nothing to us. Besides, I'm not going to let them rot in here while we have Vikings bearing down on us."

At the mention of Vikings, all the Samurai stand and approach the bars.

"Vikings? Those barbarians are coming here?" Onaga asks.

Rikard begins to cycle through the keys to get the door open. "I'm not going to lie. We will soon be under siege by a large raiding party. The vanguard will likely be here soon." The lock gives way and Rikard opens the door. "Johann, lead us out to the courtyard."

Johann nods and makes his way up the stairs. Onaga exits first and stands next to Rikard, letting his men leave ahead of him. Rikard quickly studies them as they pass by. The large man leaves first, followed by two women, then two more quickly pass by, finally a man with a rough beard and a piece of straw in his mouth. Rikards nods to Onaga to go ahead and they leave the dungeon.

-o0o-

 **Talsmith Courtyard**

In the courtyard Ella watches, from her perch on one of the catapults, as the first of the civilians make their way to the castle. Every so often a farmer or merchant would approach a Talsmith captain and volunteer their service. Ives came through a moment ago with a dozen new conscripts for their ranks. Ella raises an eyebrow as she sees the Talsmith Lawbringer escort several Samurai into the courtyard, Rikard at the rear talking to one of the men. Curiosity gets the better of her as she hops down from her perch and wanders over to them.

"You will let us leave?" Ella hears the man ask as she gets closer.

"I have no quarrel with you. If that is what you wish, we will give you what supplies we can spare and you can be on your way."

"That may not be advisable, Commander." Ella says announcing her presence. "Viking scouts have already been spotted. The vanguard won't be far behind. If they are to leave, they need to go now without delay."

"You can also stay here, but I can't guarantee your safety. If you are willing, we could use your help in the fight to come."

"That is too far, Rikard! What can seven Samurai do against the Vikings anyway?" Johann yells, getting the attention of all nearby. Several Talsmith soldiers approach, ready to draw their blades.

Rikard steps between Johann and the Samurai. "Clearly you haven't seen what the Samurai can truly do. Any one of them is worth a dozen Vikings. If we had twenty of them the battle would be more in our favor. Their skill is unmatched. I know, we fought alongside Samurai at the battle of Frostwind during the long winter!"

Johann had only heard stories and vague reports about the battle of Frostwind. It was several years ago, in a campaign that had pushed the Vikings back into the northern edges of Valkeinheim. It was all for not though, the Vikings lured both Knights and Samurai deep into the frozen north and set a trap. For months they were trapped in the ice covered wastes, hunted day and night by their Viking enemy. Rumors of survival by extreme means reached even to the walls of Talsmith. It was through a short lived alliance of the few remaining Knights and Samurai that the survivors made it back south. Johann never would would have thought that Rikard was there.

Rikard didn't notice he was shouting. The Samurai all look at each other. Johann takes several steps back, but Rikard steps forward continuing to shout at his brother.

"So don't stand there acting as though these warriors are weak, because they at least had the courage to leave their home and fight those that would destroy it!"

"Rikard." Ella says calmly as she places a hand on his shoulder.

He sighs heavily. "Forgive me for my outburst. Ella take them to Malachi's office to retrieve their comrade. I have to go to the forges." Rikard makes his way around the castle to the forges behind it.

Ella nods, "Follow me." She motions for them to follow as she walks towards the castle.

"Satomie, Matsura, Nomura, Hara, go with the Peacekeeper. Look for our weapons and armor as well. Kira, Suda on me." Onaga orders as he and his other Samurai follow Rikard. Leaving Johann alone in the courtyard.

"My lord, what should we do about them?" A soldier asks.

"They are now under the care of the Ash Legion. Treat them as you would any of their officers. Understood."

"But sir."

"Understood soldier."

"Yes sir!"

Johann enters the inner gatehouse muttering under his breath.

-o0o-

 **Talsmith Forges**

Rikard tries to quickly make his way to the forges to cool his head. He needed a clear mind for the upcoming battle.

"Commander?"

Rikard turns to see Onaga and two of his men following. He removes his helm, "What can I do for you, Onaga?"

Onaga stares at Rikard and sees something familiar in his eyes.

"We were also at Frostwind. In the final confrontation, where were you fighting?"

"This is a difficult topic, as I'm sure you know." Rikard takes a deep breath. "I was positioned lakeside on the left flank."

"Lakeside? Then you were..."

"Yes, I nearly didn't make it. Others weren't so lucky. I lost many friends that day."

"My son, he was on the lakeside. I know he died in that battle, but perhaps you may have seen him?"

Rikard thinks back to that battlefield. It was an absolute slaughter. They were outnumbered and the Vikings were purposely breaking the ice sending Knights, Samurai, and some Vikings to a freezing doom. The ice had broken under his feet and the weight of his armor was dragging him down. A Samurai that had been fighting alongside him turned back and grabbed his arm pulling up to the surface.

"The field was chaos. There is one Samurai that I will never forget." Onaga listens intently. "We were retreating. An Orochi, in green armor with an octopus helm, and I had teamed up. Both of our squads had fallen through the ice. I had nearly made it across the lake when the ice gave way beneath me. He turned back and pulled me out of the water. As he was helping me to the treeline, he shoved me forward. I turned and saw several arrow hit him. I dragged him to the cover of the trees, but there was nothing I could do for him. He said 'Warden, sore wa meiyona kotodesu. Watashitachi ga mata au toki, saisho no raundo wa watashi ni arimasu.' And, gave me this." Rikard takes a small talisman from the chain around his neck.

Onaga knew by the description that this Orochi was his son, but it was proven when he saw his family crest next to the Ash Legion amulet. "That is my family crest. You were with him in his final moments?"

"Yes, I was. This belongs to you then." Rikard says as he begins to take the crest off the chain.

"No, keep it." Onaga says. "He wanted you to have it. It is enough to know what happened and that he was not alone. Thank you, Rikard." He gives a deep bow, the other two Samurai following suit.

"Please, it is I who should thank you. Without your son, I would not be here now. I never knew his name or what he said to me, would you tell me?"

"Onaga Katakuni. It has been an honor, Warden. When we meet again, first round is on me."

Rikard looks to the sky and raises a hand, as if holding a tankard. "To you, Onaga Katakuni. I may be joining you soon enough."

Rikard looks back to Onaga. "We will aid you in this battle. If we leave now we would not make it far before the Vikings over take us."

Rikard raises an eyebrow. "Are you sure? The odds aren't in our favor."

"Yes." Onaga nods. "We will join your fight."

Rikard places a hand on Onaga's shoulder. "Thank you. Now let's see if we can get you some weapons." He turns and continues to the forges, Onaga and his men following. "I know most of our weapons aren't as ornate as yours, but I'm sure we can find you something."

-o0o-

 **Talsmith Catsle**

The Samurai gather around their fallen friend.

The large man turns to Ella. "You were with him when he died?"

She nodded. "Yes. He asked for my blade. My tantō?" The man nods. "I gave it to him. Then he stabbed himself in the abdomen. He did help me. He distracted this bastard," She kicks the body of Malachi. "Long enough for me to deal a lethal strike."

" if you can find our gear." The man orders. The other Samurai begin to scour the room looking for any of their gear. "I am Matsura." He bows.

Ella bows in return. "I am Ella." She then offers her hand to him. He looks down to her and takes her hand in his, giving a firm shake. Ella winces as he releases her hand. "So, do you think you will be joining us in the battle or will you be leaving?"

"I am always up for killing some Vikings, but it is ultimately Onaga's decision."

"Matsura." One of the Samurai calls to him.

They both go to the crates the man is standing by and as Matsura looks into the crate, a large smile forms on his face. He reaches into the crate and pulls out a large wooden club covered in spikes. "There you are, my girl. I have missed you." he says as he give the club a quick kiss.

Ella, feeling awkward, looks away from him and into the crate seeing a large cache of Samurai weapons and armor. The others begin to grab their gear and arming themselves.

"Chikushō." The bearded man says in disgust as he look over a wide brim straw hat, examining a torn edge. "Does no one here have an appreciation for fine craftsmanship?"

"Blackstones aren't known to value the finer things of life. Including life." Ella tells him.

Matsura goes to the fallen Samurai and lifts him into his arms. "We are ready. Hara, Satomie, grab the others gear. We will lay Togawa to rest, and see what Onaga wants to do about this Viking mess."

Ella nods and begins to lead them back to the courtyard. They make it to the grand foyer before Ella feels as though she is being watched.

"Lady Ella, may I have a moment of your time?"

She turns to see Lady Mila and her handmaiden standing before her. She turns back to the Samurai. "I'll meet you back in the courtyard." Matsura nods leaving the Peacekeeper with Lady Mila.

"Walk with me." Lady Mila says, turning and walking down a corridor.

Ella sensed that this wasn't a request as the handmaiden waited for Ella to follow before moving. Continuing down the corridor, Ella could feel some sort of tension between the three women. _'This may not end well.'_

They go through a door, entering a garden. The handmaiden closes the door and stands in front of it, blocking the exit. Ella notices this and immediately begins looking for other exits and escape routes. Lady Mila stands next to a small table and pours two cups of tea.

"Please join me, Lady Ella." Lady Mila says taking a seat.

"Thank you, my lady." Ella takes the seat across from her.

"I would also request that you remove your mask and hood while we speak."

Ella tilts her head, pondering the request, before she lowers her hood and takes off her mask placing it on the table. Lady Mila smiles, sipping her tea, as she studies the Peacekeeper. Short, dark hair. Deep blue eyes. A slight scar across her left cheek. Ella takes a sip of tea as Lady Mila seems to stare through her.

"So, Ella, how long have you been with Rikard?"

"We were first stationed together at Ilkaya's Barrier. He was assigned to go with me on scouting missions, but I didn't actually meet him until two weeks into the assignment." Ella takes a sip of tea.

"And why was that? Was Rikard shirking his duties?"

"No." Ella chuckles. "I didn't want an escort. Didn't think I needed anyone's help. He did eventually track me down, but it was amusing seeing him run around the fort trying to find me without anyone catching on."

"That is amusing, but how long have you been with him?"

"How do mean?"

"How long have you two been together, an item, a pairing, a coupling? I have seen the way he looks at you and you him."

"For several years now, I guess. Have we broken some sort of custom of yours?"

"No, there is no custom that has been broken. I just wish to know your intentions."

"My intentions are to stand by his side till death either takes him from me or me from him." Ella says angrily.

"Good, good." Lady Mila stands and refills Ella's cup. "But, if you mistreat him." With a quick movement Lady Mila holds a blade to Ella's throat. "I won't hesitate to hunt you down."

"Point taken, my lady. But, you need not worry. **Nothing** will break my oath to him. Not even an over protective mother."

"Good." Lady Mila removes the blade from from Ella's throat and puts it back up her dress sleeve. Ella raises an eyebrow. "What? Did you think you were this first Peacekeeper to steal the heart of a Warden." She sits back down as Ella takes a sip of tea. "So, when can I expect grandchildren?" Ella starts choking and gasping for air.

-o0o-

 **Talsmith Forges**

Rikard enters the forge to see the smiths in a flurry of activity. The apprentices were rushing out with every spare set of armor and weapons they could find. At the moment the forges were cold, everyone currently focusing on the battle ahead. A stocky man with graying hair orders the apprentices and other smiths about.

"Oi! Owen!" Rikard calls out.

"Aye, aye. Be with you in a minute." he says without turning around.

One of the other smiths looks over to Rikard and drops the shield he was holding. "Rikard! Master Rikard!"

"What? No, Rikard went to war. He's not here."

"Behind you, old man." The smith says pointing behind him.

The old smith turns to see Rikard and three Samurai at the entrance of the forge. "Well take my hammer and call me a barmaid! Rikard, you bastard, what are you doing here?" He says walking up to Rikard and shaking his hand.

"Here to see about getting my friends here some gear." Rikard motions to Onaga.

"We don't have any Samurai blades here currently. Did get my hands on one of your katanas a while back. Fine craftsmanship that was. Used what I learned from it to make some new swords."

"We'll have to make do with what we can get." Onaga says as he begins to look around the forge at the various weapons.

"What are you doing here, Rikard? Last I heard you were off killing Vikings."

"Oh, I still am. They just brought me closer to home."

"Is that what all this nonsense is about? Margrave came in here and took everything."

"Yes it is. The fight is on its way."

"How bad?"

Rikard gives him a grim look.

"That bad, eh." Owen puts his hands on his hips and looks around the forge. "The boys and I are at you service. Whatever you need you can count on us."

"Owen." One of the smiths says as he hands a pair of blades to a waiting apprentice.

"Yeah, yeah. I'm getting to that. After you left, Lady Mila asked us to make you something." Owen goes to a back room and returns with a large box, placing it on a workbench. "We used some of the things we learned from that Samurai blade to make this."

Rikard opens the box to see an aggressive looking longsword. He takes the sword, studying it and giving a few test swings.

"We've taken to calling it Death's Glare. It is the finest blade we have ever made, if I do say so myself." Owen says with pride in his voice.

"And a fine blade it is. Thank you." Rikard takes his current sword from his belt. Holding both blades up, comparing them. "I still have the first sword you gave me. It has seen me through a lot. I would hate to part with it."

"Don't you worry about that. We'll get her cleaned up and worthy for a king. Besides you can never have to many blades." Owen says as he takes Rikard's old sword holding it with great care.

"Onaga."

They all turn to see a large man wearing a demon mask and carrying a set of Samurai armor and a large sword.

"Matsura, I see you found our gear." Onaga turns to Owen. "Thank you master smith but it seems our weapons have been found."

A bell sounds in the distance from the town. Everyone in the forge looks to Rikard.

"They're here." Rikard puts Death's Glare into his belt and his helm on. "Owen get your men ready. Onaga meet me in the courtyard." Rikard nods to each of them before running out of the forge.

-o0o-

 **Talsmith Courtyard Gate**

"Move it people!" Ives yells as the towns people flood through the gate. "Don't stop till you're in the castle! Go, go, go!"

"Patrik, take the left side! Wait until you have sight of them! We don't want to hit the people coming in!" Lambert shouts to the marksman as he rushes up the stairs of the gatehouse, several archers following him.

"Ash Legion, form up!" Robert orders. Four squads take position of each side of the gate.

Half way through the courtyard Aveline continues to wave people through. "Keep going. All way back into the great hall."

"Get this catapult loaded and ready to fire!" Ella yells at the loading team.

The bell rings in town again.

Rikard runs into the courtyard passing through the inner gate. He spots Johann in the gatehouse as he goes by. "Johann, on me." He nods and runs to catch up.

"Jessop, get your men into ranks!" Johann yells exiting the gatehouse.

Rikard comes to a stop at the outer gate. "Ives, status."

Ives picks up a bag from the ground and hands back to a woman. "Get moving!" He yells before turning to Rikard, Johann joining him. "I reckon 'bout half the town has come through. Once that bell went off they came flooding in."

"I agree. It was a steady flow until moments ago." Johann adds

"Robert is getting our front ranks ready. Lambert is already up top waiting to fire on the bastards. And, I think I heard Ella screeching over by the catapults."

"Johann, are your men ready for this?" Rikard looks to his brother.

"They will be. We are moving into position now. Archers are already along the inner wall and..."

"Johann! Master Johann!" A man from the crowd interrupts.

"Harrison, what's wrong?" Johann says removing his helm.

"Its Elsie! She's still in town. She can't move fast enough to keep up with everyone. Please, you must help us." Harrison pleads. Johann's eyes go wide as he hears this.

"We don't have time to go searching for a single woman. The Vikings are probably sacking the town already." Ives says.

There is an explosion in the distance, a plume of smoke rising into the sky.

"Lambert!" Rikard yells up to the wall.

"Edge of town! First crossroads! North gate!" Lambert yells back.

"Commander please." Harrison begs.

Rikard takes off his helm. "Johann?"

No response, the Lawbringer just stares towards the town.

"Brother!" Rikard shakes Johann's shoulder.

"She is heavy with child. Due any day now." There was a tone in his brother's voice. One he had never heard from him before. Fear, true fear.

"Are you really considering this?" Ives questions. "There is no time..."

Rikard holds up a hand, silencing the Conqueror. "Johann, how important is this girl?"

Johann stares at him for a moment. "Extremely."

Rikard thinks for a brief moment. "We do this, you follow my orders. I tell you to run, you run. I tell you to fight, you fight. We go out there, you grab the girl, and run straight back." Johann nods. "Ives your flares." Rikard holds out a hand.

"You can't be serious." Ives says handing over several flares.

"Thank you, my lords. I will wait here for your return." Harrison says as he walks several paces away, trying to stay out of the soldiers way.

Rikard puts his helm on, turns to shout orders, and comes face to face with Ella. "And where do you think you are going?"

"There is a pregnant woman out there that needs our help."

Ella crosses her arms. "And, she is so important that the commander and the lord both need to go get her."

"She is family." Rikard motions his head back towards Johann. She glares at the Lawbringer. "If it was you..."

"If it was me, the Vikings would be dead." She interrupts.

"But, she isn't you and she needs our help. That is what we do. Defend the defenseless." He places a hand on her arm. "Besides, if this doesn't work out you can scold me later."

"Fine."

"Thank you." He leans in and places his forehead against hers. "I'll be back before you know it."

"You better."

Rikard goes to give Lambert his orders. Ella stalks up to Johann, one hand on her hip there other pointing at him.

"You get him killed and you will have to answer to me. Understand?"

Johann stands straight at attention. "Yes ma'am."

"Aye sir. We see your flares, we fire on that location. Just make sure you're not there when we do." Lambert calls back down.

Rikard turns back to Ella and Ives. "You hold the gate as long as you can. When Johann gets back you shut it, if you haven't already."

"It will be dark soon. You two better hurry." Ella says looking up at the sky.

"Johann." Rikard nods.

Johann puts his helm on and nods in return. They sprint through the gate and into the town.

Ives stands next to Ella as she watches the Lawbringer and her Warden fade from sight.

"You do realize, if we lose the commander and the lord we are royally fucked." Ives grumbles.

Ella sighs and shakes her head at the Conqueror's crude language.

"We won't lose them." She draws her blades. "Now, prepare yourself."

-o0o-

 **Author's Note:**

Just in time for the New Year, here in the states anyway. Hope y'all had a good holidays and wish you the best for the new year. Thank you **bunnyguys** for following. I promise the action will pick up next chapter. See y'all soo and Happy New Year.


	8. Chapter 8: Understood

**Chapter 8: Understood**

 **Talsmith**

Johann and Rikard race through the streets of Talsmith. A group of townsfolk comes running around a corner trying to get to the castle.

"Make a hole!" Rikard yells, not stopping his sprint.

The group quickly parts allowing the the Ash Legion Commander and Lord Talsmith a clear path. They rush passed in a blur of red, gray and blue, white.

"Where is she?" Rikard calls back to Johann.

"She lives near the market."

"We put explosives there." Rikard grunts as he jumps over a broken crate on the ground.

"I'm aware! Hurry!"

As Rikard passes an alley, a Viking leaps out and chases after him. Johann takes his poleaxe, impaling the Viking in the back and forces him to the ground. Johann pulls his weapon free and races after Rikard, seeing him engaged with another Viking. Rikard parries a strike and thrusts the guard of Death's Glare into the man's neck. With a splash of blood and a choking gurgle the man falls to the ground. Seeing another Viking coming from an adjacent building Rikard charges for him.

"Keep moving!" Rikard orders as Johann runs by.

The Viking goes to strike at Johann as he goes by but misses and is thrown of balance. Rikard takes advantage of this to deal a heavy overhead strike, delivering a fatal blow. He turns and races after his brother. Two Vikings try to block Johann's path but he just barrels through them, knocking one to the ground. Rikard slashes out at the one standing, making a clean cut through his neck, and firmly plants his boot on the fallen Vikings neck.

"ÉG RÍF ÞIG Í BITA!"

Rikard looks up to see a Raider swinging his dane axe at the Lawbringer. Johann stumbles as the axe scrapes across his back. Johann turns to face the Raider as he raises his axe for another attack. Johann parries the strike and counters with one of his own.

"Zu Tode, mein feind!" Johann yells, delivering a devastating blow. The Raider takes several steps back, trying to regain his senses. Johann looks past the Viking to see Rikard charging towards them.

"Sterben!" Rikard rams his shoulder into the Raider's back, knocking them both to the ground. As Rikard gets up, he stabs the Raider in the chest. The Viking grabs at the blade trying to get free but looks up to see an armored boot rushing towards his head. With a final twist of his foot, Rikard pulls his blade free, and looks up as two great fireballs streak through the sky. Rikard looks down the road seeing a large group of Vikings heading their way. "Get ready to run!" Rikard shouts as he pulls a flare from his belt, lights it, and points it towards the Vikings. A bright red flare flies through the air high above the buildings. "Move!" Rikard sprints towards the Vikings, Johann closely following. They charge the Vikings.

-o0o-

 **Talsmith Catsle, Outer gate**

A spiked flail crushes the skull of a Viking warrior.

A dagger slashes the throat of another.

A poleaxe impales a third.

"Hold the line! The bastards will not get through!" Robert orders. The Ash Legion soldiers ready themselves for the next wave of Vikings. A Raider and two Berserkers lead the charge of the next wave. "Ives, Ella, on me." The three stride forward to meet the Vikings.

"Volley!" Lambert yells from atop the wall.

Arrows fly overhead, felling several Vikings. The Raider takes an arrow to the shoulder but continues his charge. Robert meets him head on, dodging a strike from the Raider, and shoves the Raider back with the haft of his poleaxe. A Berserker attacks from Robert's flank. Ives crashes into the Berserker with his shield, knocking him to the ground. The second Berserker, a female, leaps over the male Berserker both axes raised high. Ives blocks the attack and shoves her to his left. The Berserker stumbles before she is grabbed from behind. Ella stabs the Berserker twice in the abdomen with her dagger before cutting the Viking's throat with her sword. Ella releases the Berserker, letting her fall to her knees clutching her bleeding throat. Ives towers over the fallen Berserker, swinging his flail, and brings it down hard on the Viking's head, smashing it to bits. Robert parries the Raider's attack. Grabbing the Raider, Robert shoves the him to the side, before sweeping his legs out from under him bringing the Viking to the ground and stabs him with the spike of his poleaxe.

The three ready to take on the remaining Viking soldiers, as two fireballs fly over the town. Following the path of the fireballs they see a red flare go up above the town.

"All archers ready a volley on that flare." Lambert orders. The archers notch their arrows, take aim, and draw back on the strings. "Fire!"

Dozens of arrows race through the sky and into the town.

-o0o-

 **Streets of Talsmith**

Johann swings his poleaxe in a wide arc, striking four Vikings in one motion. Rikard thrust his sword into a soldier's chest using the momentum to throw the man back. He takes his sword by the blade and strikes another man's neck with the guard, pulling the Viking to him. Rikard takes the man's shield and goes back to back with Johann.

"Kneel!" Rikard yells. Johann complies, going down to one knee and raises his poleaxe ready to impale the next Viking. Rikard raises the round shield to cover both him and Johann. A volley of arrows rains down around them, killing the attacking Vikings. One of the arrows grazes Rikard's leg.

Rikard lowers the arrow laden shield, looking for any surviving Vikings. "Clear." he says, throwing the shield to the ground.

Johann gets to his feet, scanning the area around them. "Bloody hell."

"I didn't expect that to work that well." Rikard says, rotating his shoulder.

"You've done that before?"

"Oh, hell no!" Rikard taps his fist on Johann's shoulder. "Now, let's get moving."

Johann stares at Rikard before running after him. They rush down the main thoroughfare, hearing the battle cries of the Vikings surrounding them. Johann catches sight of another group of Vikings ahead of them.

"Take a right." Johann says to his brother.

Without a moments pause Rikard turns right entering a small alley between buildings, Johann on his heels.

"Take the third left, then the second right, and straight through the carpenter's workshop."

"This is an odd route." Rikard asks looking over his shoulder before taking a left.

"This is how I would get to Elsie for..."

"For your little rendezvous?" Rikard stops to look around the corner, spotting a pair a Vikings ahead, he holds up a hand to halt his brother. "Don't worry. I don't judge. Do mother and father know?" He whispers, still watching the Vikings as they begin to walk towards them.

"No, they don't. How many?"

"Why haven't you married her yet? Just two. I'll take the first one." Rikard knocks on the wall beside him. The Vikings both look towards the sound.

"Its not that simple. I was to be wed to some noble's daughter from Beaufort." Johann sees Rikard hold up three fingers, lowering one, then another.

A Viking rounds the corner, Rikard punches him in the jaw and shoves him farther into the alley. The second Viking comes around the corner to attack at Rikard's back, but is quickly halted as his skull is split by Johann's poleaxe. Rikard grabs the Viking by the back of the head and slams him into the wall twice before throwing him to the ground and stabbing his sword through his chest. Rikard turns back to Johann and motions for him to lead the way. They make their way down the alley, Johann stopping to look around a corner.

"You're a Lord now. You can marry whoever you want, and trust me the women from Beaufort are horrible anyway."

Johann looks to him, "You've been to Beaufort?" He holds his hand up signaling a halt as a group of Vikings runs by.

"Briefly. It wasn't pleasant. Far to confined." He leans against the wall. "Too many lords trying to get ahead of each other. Scores of fighting men used as pawns in a meaningless game of power." Rikard sighs in disgust.

"Sounds like there is a story there, but we need to keep moving." Johann rounds the corner and continues on.

"Aye, right behind you." Rikard follows.

-o0o-

 **Talsmith Castle, Outer Gate**

"I'm getting really tired of these bastards!" Ives yells, crushing a soldier's wind pipe with the edge of his shield.

Robert impales a Viking throwing him over his shoulder. "We can't hold much longer!" he yells, seeing another wave of Vikings coming for them.

"We need to..." Ella yells in surprise as a Raider charges, lifts her over his shoulder, and throws her to the ground. The Raider goes in for a final blow raising his axe.

"Waga shuchuu ni ari!" With a heavy thud, a large kanabo slams into the Raider's chest. The Viking stumbles, falling on to his back. The Shugoki continues his attack, raising the club above his head he slams it down on the raider.

"I hate Vikings." Matsura says, offering a hand to the Peacekeeper.

Ella takes the offered hand and is pulled to her feet. "Thanks for the assist."

"Thank me when this is over." He turns to the approaching Vikings, roars, and charges towards them.

"Forward! Hold them at bay!" Onaga orders as the other Samurai charge through the gate. "Knights recover."

Ella, Ives, and Robert step back, letting the Samurai take their place. A volley of arrows flies over them towards the next wave.

"Where is the commander?"

"He and the lord went to help some straggling townsfolk." Robert answers.

"Bloody idiot." Ella mutters.

"Without aid?" Robert nods. "Satomie, Suda find the commander. Ensure his return." Onaga orders.

The Shinobi and Orochi don't respond, they merely slip through the Vikings and race into the town.

"How long can we hold the gate?" The Kensai looks to the Lawbringer.

"With your back up, we can hold a while longer but not much."

A Viking battle cry catches their attention. A Warlord was approaching. As were the Warborn.

-o0o-

 **Back Alley**

Johann points to the building ahead of them. "This is the carpenter's workshop. After this it's just..." A woman's scream interrupts him.

They both race ahead. Another scream and the sounds of a struggle from the workshop. Seeing the door, Rikard lowers his shoulder. "Break left!" He shouts before slamming into the door, breaking it off its hinges. He stumbles and rolls right using the momentum to spring back to his feet. Johann charges in going left. The both ready their weapons.

They take quick notice of the Valkyrie in the center of the workshop. Then the Berserker clutching the spear impaled in his shoulder. The Valkyrie twists her spear, breaking something vital, as the Berserker goes limp falling to the ground alongside two other Viking soldiers. The Valkyrie takes a defensive stance upon seeing the Knights.

"Johann!" Behind the Valkyrie a woman sitting on the ground reaches a hand out towards the Lawbringer.

"Elsie." Johann moves towards her but the Valkyrie blocks his path.

Rikard lowers his sword and holds up his hand. ""Við erum hér bara fyrir stelpuna." The Valkyrie looks to him. "Þessi maður er eiginmaður hennar." He motions to Johann.

"Johann, she saved me form those men. They were going to..."

"It's alright I'm here now. We're going to get you to the castle. Rikard do we have a fight on our hands?"

"Working on it. Þakka þér fyrir að vernda, Elsie. Við viljum bara taka það til virkisins."

The Valkyrie lowers her spear but keeps her shield at the ready and steps aside. She keeps an eye on Rikard as Johann goes to Elsie.

"Are you alright? Did they hurt you?" he quickly asks.

"I'm fine for the moment thanks to her." Elsie bows her head towards the Valkyrie." But, I don't think your child is going to wait much longer."

"What?! Now?!"

"Johann, take her and go." Rikard orders.

"I'm not going to leave you on your own."

"Go now. That's an order. You're fighting for something more important now."

Johann nods, picking up Elsie in his arms he leaves the workshop.

After they were gone, the Valkyrie look back to Rikard. "Why?"

"Why?" he repeats.

"Why did you risk all by coming here instead of staying behind your walls?"

"It is because of people like her." He nods in the direction of Johann and Elsie. "Because she and that child are what I fight for. To give them a chance to live. Mine is a life of war. Theirs doesn't have to be."

A war horn sounds in the distance.

"So, what do we do now? Is this to be a final duel for one of us?" Rikard asks.

"No. This is no place to die. Join your Knights. Fight well in open battle." she levels her spear at him. "Should we meet again on the field there will be no quarter. Understand Warden."

Rikard bows his head and gives a mock salute. "You have my thanks. Fight well Valkyrie." Rikard backs out of the door and into the alleyway.

-o0o-

 **Streets of Talsmith**

Johann runs as quickly as he can to the castle with Elsie in his arms. He goes into a house to avoid a group of Vikings. He waits for the group to run by.

"Are we going to make it, Johann?" she asks, looking up to him.

"Of course we are. We'll be there in no time."

"I can tell you're lying."

"Don't worry. Rikard bought us some time. We'll make it." He peers through the doorway.

"Rikard? That Warden is your brother?" she asks, pain evident in her voice.

"It's a long story." Johann steps out of the house. "It has to do with these Vikings. Otherwise, I doubt he ever would have returned."

"Stöðva!" A Viking yell from behind them.

Johann turns to see a trio of Vikings with weapons drawn. He didn't have time to react as the lead Viking let out a gurgle and clutched his neck. A figure drops down from the rooftop, landing on the other two and knocking them to the ground. Johann recognizes this figure as a Samurai Shinobi as they slam their sickle like weapon into the back of their skulls. The Shinobi stands and looks to Johann.

"I really hope Rikard was right about you." Johann says, giving the assassin a wary look.

"Where is the commander?" a voice behind him asks.

Johann turns to see an Orochi. "He was buying us some time. Look, we aren't going to make it on our own. Will you escort us to the castle?"

The Orochi looks over the Lawbringer and the woman in his arms. "Satomie, take them to the castle. I'll find the commander."

The Shinobi silently nods and walks past Johann towards the castle.

"Where was the commander last?" the Orochi asks.

A red flare shoots into the sky not far away.

"There he is." Johann looks to the flare.

-o0o-

 **Streets of Talsmith**

Under the light of a red flare, Rikard shoves a Raider back and slashes at his leg, bringing the Raider to a knee. Rikard tears through the Raider's neck with the guard of his sword. He kicks the Raider away and prepares for the next Viking. Two soldiers charge him. Rikard blocks a sword with his own and grabs the haft of an axe with his free hand from the other. He rips the hand axe out of the Viking's grip and kicks him away. Using the axe, Rikard splits the skull of the other viking. He raises his sword towards the rest of the Vikings and puts his back to the wall of a building just as a volley of arrows rains down on the Viking group.

Rikard takes a moment to catch his breath. He suddenly drop to a knee and places a hand to his side. He looks at his hand and sees it streaked with blood. _'Ella is going to be angry.'_ he thinks. Preoccupied with his wound, Rikard doesn't notice a Berserker creeping up on him.

The Berserker raises his axe, but lets out a pained gurgle as a kunai is imbedded in his neck. Rikard gets to his feet as the Berserker falls to the ground and raises his sword. An Orochi emerges from the darkness.

"Shiki-kan" he bows his head slightly. "We need to return to the shiro."

Rikard nods as a large explosion lights up the night sky from the direction of the market.

"Lets move. Follow me." Rikard leads the Orochi through the alleys, heading towards the castle.

-o0o-

 **Talsmith Castle, Outer Gate**

The Knights of the Ash Legion and the handful of Samurai were fending off the latest wave of Vikings. Surprisingly, the Samurai were adapting well to fighting alongside the Knights. Robert, Ives, and the Shugoki Matsura were holding the front line. Ella, the two Nobushi, and the Aramusha were slipping through any openings and dealing deadly strikes. Onaga stood at the gate calling out threats as they came, most notably was the Warborn Warlord issuing orders to the Viking soldiers.

A volley of arrows rains down around the Warlord, killing several vikings but the Warlord merely raises his arrow riddled shield and blocks yet another volley. The Warlord points his sword at the defenders. "Dreptu þá alla!" he yells, signalling the next wave.

From atop the ramparts, Lambert orders the archers to fire at will. His attention turns to the town as a large exsplosion erupts from the market. Lambert then spots a Lawbringer carrying a woman with a Shinobi at his side. He leans over the parapets and yells down to Robert. "Lord Talsmith across the way!" he points towards the Lawbringer.

Robert pulls his poleaxe from the neck of a Raider, looks up to Lambert, then out to Lord Talsmith. "Clear a path!" he yells

Matsura picks up a soldier by the throat, crushes it, and tosses the man at his fellows. With a roar the Shugoki charges forward bowling over all the Vikings in his path. Ives sprints after the Shugoki. Robert charges right after them, beheading a Berserker on his way. Matsura charges straight at the Warlord, raising his kanabo high. The Warlord parries the attack and shoves the Shugoki to the side. Ives runs forward, jumps, and bashes his shield into the Warlord staggering the Viking. Dazed the Warlord doesn't see Rorbert charging him at full speed with the pike of his poleaxe leveled at the his chest. The Viking let out a pained yell as Robert raises the him into the air on the pike. The Warlord goes limp and Robert drops him to the ground.

With the rest of the current wave being dealt with, Johann, Elsie, and the shinobi group up with the others and head inside the gate. Once inside the walls Johann places Elsie on her feet. She holds on to his arm for support. Her father, Harrison, and Aveline come rushing up to them.

"Get her inside now." Johann orders.

"Yes of course my lord. Thank you, thank you." Harrison says helping Elsie to the castle.

Aveline merely nods as she helps the woman forward.

Johann turns to look out the gate and takes several heavy breathes. "Pull back! Seal the gate!"

The surrounding Ash Legion troops look at the Lawbringer before turning to their own officers awaiting orders.

"Those are Commander Rikard's orders! Seal the gate!" he yells.

Onaga turns to Robert, waiting to see what he would do.

Robert lets out a frustrated grunt. "Seal the gate."

The Ash Legion troops quickly respond and close the gate. With a moment of respite the Knight and Samurai catch their breath. Johann turns to go to his men but is stopped by Ella standing in front of him.

"Where is he?" she asks coldly.

"On his way." he answers.

"And how is he going to get in?"

"We'll find a way." he starts to walk away but stops when a dagger is held at a gap in his armor.

"If he doesn't return, and the Vikings don't kill you. I will do it myself." she treatens, her voice cold as death itself.

"Understood." he replies walking off to join his men.

-o0o-

 **A/N:**

Sorry this has taken so long. Hopefully we can get back on track soon. Anyway, thanks **Sierro97** for following. Until next time.


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